Rising Costs Could Delay NASA's Next Mission to Mars and Future Launches

摘要

Faced with a dramatically higher price tag, NASA managers will decide next month whether to postpone the launch of a sophisticated Mars rover for 2 years. Such a delay in the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) would mark a significant setback to the Mars research program, which has sent a new spacecraft to the planet every other year for a decade. Planetary scientists also worry that pushing back the mission could have a ripple effect, delaying and even canceling future missions.