Why are people trying to save NASA’s VIPER mission
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VIPER is not going down without a fight.
Planetary science fans are calling on Congress to intervene after NASA pulled the plug on the VIPER—short for Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover—mission this month. More than 2,000 supporters from engineers to space enthusiasts signed a petition last week led by the Planetary Society asking lawmakers to restore the program to NASA’s budget.
“VIPER remains an important part of the United States’ mission to return to the Moon. Without it, the United States risks losing its leading position in lunar exploration,” the letter said. “Dangers for other NASA missions, including the return of astronauts to the Moon as part of the Artemis program, are also increasing due to the loss of information about the location and locations of the South Pole.”
In addition to the appeal of international leadership, the book also makes a cost argument: NASA has already invested 450 million dollars in the rover. It intends to spend an additional $323 million to launch an inactive “mass simulator,” like a lunar rover paperweight, instead of moving forward with the mission.
Background:NASA canceled the program after facing escalating costs and schedule delays. The mission was scheduled to launch in late 2024 to hopefully answer some of the many questions about the location of water ice and other resources on the Moon.
A fully developed robot may live to fly one day. International agencies and commercial partners have until Aug. 1 to reveal to NASA the plan to use the rover as such. If it doesn’t find takers, the agency plans to dismantle the rover and fly its parts to other missions.
Lack of a champion?
It is easy to relate the cancellation of this and other planetary science missions like the Mars Sample Return due to the lack of champions of causes on Capitol Hill à la former Representative John Culberson to vigorously defend the Europa Clipper.
But Jack Kiraly, director of government relations for the Planetary Society, says the lack of a political leader poses no problems for NASA’s planetary science ambitions, pointing to scattered support on Capitol Hill, including the newly formed Planetary Science Caucus.
“It depends on the budget. There’s not a lot of wiggle room,” Kiraly said. “It’s just not the kind of growth we expected a year and a half ago.”
The lack of prioritization now could “completely leave” a gap in America’s planetary science activities as other nations, including China, Japan, and India, increase investment in their solar system studies, Kiraly said.
To lead the charge
Kiraly highlighted a number of lawmakers who are willing to fight for funding for planetary science programs, including:
- Representative Judy Chu (D-CA)
- Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE)
- Representative Glenn Ivey (D-MD)
- Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)
Bottom line
Van Hollen was behind the successful amendment of language in the Senate’s 2025 NASA appropriations bill that would direct NASA to establish a Habitable Worlds Observatory Project Office at the Goddard Space Flight Center. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) also sponsored an amendment to the report’s language that encouraged NASA to invest in its own space station infrastructure.
Some highlights from the spending bill, released last week:
- $25.4 billion NASA topline, $559 million more than 2024 funding
- $7.65 billion in assessments, $30 million more than the president’s 2025 funding request
- $236 million for the NEO Surveyor asteroid-hunting mission.
This story appeared firstPaymentand is republished here with permission.
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