Congress OKs plan for NASA’s next steps

The Senate early Thursday approved legislation shaping U.S. space policy, continuing the shuttle and international space station programs and giving a boost to President Bush’s vision of a new era of ambitious space exploration.

Bush has called for a “Vision for Space Exploration” and an eventual bid to return humans to the moon. While the newly approved bill focuses on the next two years, it also lays out policy elements to support a move toward a return to the moon.

“Our national policy will determine the nation’s role in future space exploration and its contribution to broad research and our national security,” Texas Republican Kay Bailey Hutchison, chairman of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Science and Space, said in a statement.

The NASA reauthorization bill, which has passed the House and goes to Bush for his signature, gives spending outlines but specific appropriations are made in annual spending bills.

The bill calls for the completion of the international space station, and designates the U.S. portion of that project a national laboratory facility that Hutchison said “will expand the variety of areas to which space research can be applied.”

It increases funding for the space shuttle program, which has been plagued by technical problems and a deadly accident in 2003, to allow for transition to the next generation of human spaceflight vehicles. NASA’s shuttle fleet is scheduled to be retired in 2010.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCBP leaders cut out of Trump ad buy decision

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

It also expands the Centennial Challenges — a NASA prize program modeled after the privately backed Ansari X Prize won by SpaceShipOne last year. The new legislation would allow for multimillion-dollar prizes, far in excess of the current per-competition limit of $250,000.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCBP leaders cut out of Trump ad buy decision

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

In a statement, NASA Administrator Michael Griffin hailed the congressional action: "Passage of this legislation marks another endorsement by the Congress of the nation's Vision for Space Exploration. We appreciate the efforts of the House and Senate members and their continued strong support of NASA. America must continue to be the leader in space exploration as we transition to a new and exciting mission for the American people."

This report includes information from MSNBC.com.