NON-RENEWAL. WE ARE STILL WAITING TO HEAR BACK. WE’LL KEEP YOU POSTED. OUR LEADERSHIP IN SPACE IS UNDER THREAT. THAT IS THE WARNING TODAY FROM TOP NASA OFFICIALS AND A FORMER NASA ADMINISTRATOR. THAT’S RIGHT. WESH 2’S SPACE COAST REPORTER MEGHAN MORIARTY IS LIVE FOR US RIGHT NOW WITH THE CLEAR MESSAGE FROM THOSE LEADERS. CHINA IS SURGING. SUMMER AND NANCY. THE MESSAGE WAS CLEAR WITHOUT A SUCCESSFUL AND FULLY FUNDED ARTEMIS PROGRAM, WE RISK LOSING THE MOON TO CHINA. HOWEVER, THERE ARE STILL CONCERNS AROUND THE SETBACKS AND THE EXCESSIVE COST TIED TO SPACE EXPLORATION. IT’S GETTING DOWN TO THE WIRE IN THE COUNTRY THAT LANDS ON THE MOON. NEXT, COULD HOLD THE POWER SHAPING THE RULES OF SPACE FOR DECADES TO COME. THEIR INTENT IS CLEAR. THEIR PROGRESS IS REAL, AND TIME IS NOT ON OUR SIDE. THIS IS A RACE THAT THE UNITED STATES CANNOT AFFORD TO LOSE. DURING A SENATE COMMITTEE MEETING ON WEDNESDAY, KEY WITNESSES TESTIFIED BEFORE LAWMAKERS URGING THEM NOT TO CUT BACK FUNDING FOR SPACE EXPLORATION. THIS COMES AFTER CRITICISM OVER THE EXCESSIVE COST AND DELAYS IN COMPONENTS FOR NASA’S ARTEMIS PROGRAM. WE’RE TALKING ABOUT NOW AN AGENCY THAT HAS LESS THAN ONE THIRD OF 1% OF THE FEDERAL BUDGET. AND, BY THE WAY, IF YOU GO BACK TO APOLLO, IT WAS SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 4 AND 5%. SO WE ARE SIGNIFICANTLY SMALLER. MOST NOTABLY, WE HEARD FROM FORMER NASA ADMINISTRATOR JIM BRIDENSTINE, WHO ACKNOWLEDGED THE CONCERNS OVER MONEY BUT SAYS THE PROGRAM IS ESSENTIAL NOT JUST TO BEAT CHINA TO THE MOON, BUT FOR OVERALL SCIENTIFIC DEVELOPMENT. WE HAD A DRUG, A MERCK DRUG, KEYTRUDA, WHICH IS FOR LUNG CANCER, AND WE WERE ABLE TO TO MAKE THAT DRUG SO THAT INSTEAD OF INSTEAD OF TRYING TO FIND OUT IF WITHIN 2 OR 3 MONTHS, IF IT’S GOING TO BE EFFICACIOUS, YOU CAN FIND OUT WITHIN 2 TO 3 WEEKS WHETHER OR NOT IT’S GOING TO BE EFFICACIOUS. FORMER NASA ADMINISTRATOR NOMINEE JARED ISAACMAN ALSO WEIGHED IN ON X, SAYING IN PART, IT IS GOOD TO SEE NASA GETTING SOME WELL-DESERVED ATTENTION, BUT ADDING THAT WE SHOULD BE ASKING WHY TAXPAYERS HAVE SPENT 100 PLUS BILLION TRYING TO RETURN TO THE MOON, SAYING THE SLS IS EXTRAORDINARILY EXPENSIVE AND ORION HAS ISSUES. THE SUITS ARE NOT READY AND THE LANDERS ARE NOT READY. ISAACMAN ALSO HIGHLIGHTED THAT NASA CAN GET HELP FROM PRIVATE INDUSTRY. SO THIS WAY THE TAXPAYER ISN’T FRONTING MOST OF THE COST. NOW, WHILE THIS IS AN IMPORTANT DISCUSSION THAT WILL CONTINUE, IT SEEMS TO BE CLEAR THAT THERE ALSO NEEDS TO BE SOME BACKUP PLANS IN PLACE. ANOTHER COMMITTEE MEETING IS NOT ON THE SCHEDULE JUST YET.
‘We risk losing the moon to China’ NASA space race continues amid U.S. funding concerns
Updated: 7:02 PM EDT Sep 3, 2025
As the race to land on the moon intensifies, key witnesses are urging U.S. lawmakers not to cut funding for NASA’s Artemis program, emphasizing the importance of beating China to the moon and advancing scientific development.Allen Cutler, president and CEO of the Coalition for Deep Space Exploration, stressed the urgency of the situation. “Their intent is clear. Their progress is real, and time is not on our side. This is a race that the United States cannot afford to lose,” Cutler said.During a Senate committee meeting on Wednesday, witnesses addressed concerns over the excessive costs and delays in components for NASA’s Artemis program. Former NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine acknowledged these concerns but emphasized the program’s significance.”We’re talking about now an agency that has less than one-third of one percent of the federal budget. And by the way, if you go back to Apollo, it was somewhere between 4 and 5 percent, so we are significantly smaller,” Bridenstine said.Bridenstine also highlighted the scientific benefits of the Artemis program, citing advancements in medical research. “We had a drug merk drug Keytruda, which is for lung cancer and we were able to make that drug so that instead of trying to find out within two to three months if it’s going to be efficacious. You can find out within two to three weeks if it’s going to be efficacious,” he said.Former NASA administrator nominee Jared Isaacman shared his views on the social media platform X, expressing mixed feelings about NASA’s current situation.”It is good to see NASA getting some well-deserved attention,” Isaacman said, but he also questioned the financial investment. “We should be asking why taxpayers have spent $100+ billion trying to return to the Moon,” he said, pointing out issues with the Space Launch System, Orion, and other components.
As the race to land on the moon intensifies, key witnesses are urging U.S. lawmakers not to cut funding for NASA’s Artemis program, emphasizing the importance of beating China to the moon and advancing scientific development.
Allen Cutler, president and CEO of the Coalition for Deep Space Exploration, stressed the urgency of the situation. “Their intent is clear. Their progress is real, and time is not on our side. This is a race that the United States cannot afford to lose,” Cutler said.
During a Senate committee meeting on Wednesday, witnesses addressed concerns over the excessive costs and delays in components for NASA’s Artemis program. Former NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine acknowledged these concerns but emphasized the program’s significance.
“We’re talking about now an agency that has less than one-third of one percent of the federal budget. And by the way, if you go back to Apollo, it was somewhere between 4 and 5 percent, so we are significantly smaller,” Bridenstine said.
Bridenstine also highlighted the scientific benefits of the Artemis program, citing advancements in medical research. “We had a drug merk drug Keytruda, which is for lung cancer and we were able to make that drug so that instead of trying to find out within two to three months if it’s going to be efficacious. You can find out within two to three weeks if it’s going to be efficacious,” he said.
Former NASA administrator nominee Jared Isaacman shared his views on the social media platform X, expressing mixed feelings about NASA’s current situation.
“It is good to see NASA getting some well-deserved attention,” Isaacman said, but he also questioned the financial investment. “We should be asking why taxpayers have spent $100+ billion trying to return to the Moon,” he said, pointing out issues with the Space Launch System, Orion, and other components.