Space Science: Causes and Impacts of Cutbacks to NASA's Outer Solar
System Exploration Missions (Chapter Report, 12/29/93, GAO/NSIAD-94-24).

A combination of factors led to the cancellation of the Comet Rendezvous
Asteroid Flyby (CRAF) program, which was developing spacecraft to
observe comets and asteroids traveling through the solar system.  In
addition, the original scientific capabilities of the Cassini program,
which plans a 1997 mission to study Saturn, have been pared back.
First, a huge increase in estimated costs forced the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to drop an important
experiment--the comet nucleus penetrator.  Second, congressional budget
cuts for fiscal years 1992 and 1993 prompted a two-year schedule
extension and a significant boost in estimated costs.  CRAF was canceled
without thoroughly examining whether its scope and that of Cassini could
have been reduced in order to preserve both missions.  Even with the
termination of CRAF, NASA doubts whether its future budgets can handle
all of its planned ongoing projects.  As a result, NASA has been
restructuring the Cassini project to further reduce costs. The Cassini
project is now meeting its new costs and schedule goals, and NASA plans
to exceed its new science goals.  Several factors still threaten
Cassini's future, however, including uncertainties about whether a new,
more powerful solid rocket motor will be ready in time for the
spacecraft's launch.

--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------

 REPORTNUM:  NSIAD-94-24
     TITLE:  Space Science: Causes and Impacts of Cutbacks to NASA's 
             Outer Solar System Exploration Missions
      DATE:  12/29/93
   SUBJECT:  Aerospace research
             Agency missions
             Cost control
             Future budget projections
             Scientific research
             Space exploration
             Budget cuts
             Program management
             Program evaluation
             Research and development
IDENTIFIER:  NASA Comet Rendezvous Asteroid Flyby Program
             NASA Cassini Saturn Probe Program
             Mariner Mark II Spacecraft
             NASA Galileo Mission
             Titan IV Rocket
             
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