White House Budget Grounds Mars Sample Return, Scales Back ISS and Orion as Space Strategy Shifts Toward Beating China to the Moon

Insider Brief

• The White House’s FY2026 budget appears to be refocusing NASA’s efforts on beating China to the Moon and preparing for human Mars missions, while cutting or canceling several legacy programs.
• The plan phases out the SLS rocket and Orion capsule after three missions, cancels the Mars Sample Return mission, and eliminates the Gateway lunar station.
• Deep cuts are proposed across space science, Earth observation, space technology, ISS operations, and STEM programs to fund lunar and Martian priorities through commercial partnerships.

The Trump administration’s FY2026 budget proposes significant shifts NASA’s priorities, reallocating funding to lunar and Martian ambitions while canceling or reducing support for longstanding science, climate and exploration programs. The proposal pivots sharply to favor commercial partnerships and geopolitical urgency—especially with an eye toward competing with China.

According to the White House’s discretionary request, more than $7 billion would be directed toward human lunar missions and an additional $1 billion toward Mars-focused initiatives. But these gains come at a cost: the budget eliminates the Mars Sample Return mission, phases out the Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion spacecraft after only three flights, ends support for the Gateway lunar station, and scales back NASA’s investments in Earth science, climate monitoring, and the International Space Station (ISS).

China as The Lunar Benchmark

The administration’s stated goal is to return American astronauts to the Moon before China and to position the U.S. as the first nation to send humans to Mars. The White House describes the strategy as necessary for maintaining leadership in space, writing that it would invest in a future-focused strategy for space exploration while avoiding overruns associated with legacy systems.

China is aiming for its own crewed Moon landing before 2030. The Trump administration’s budget implies that beating China to the lunar surface is both a technological and symbolic imperative, one that justifies phasing out over-budget systems like SLS and Orion in favor of more agile commercial launch vehicles.

The Gateway lunar station, a planned international project, is also scrapped in the budget. Its elimination cuts off a collaboration that included modules already built and shipped from Italy, a move that signals a preference for speed and cost reduction.

SLS, Orion, and Gateway on the Chopping Block

NASA’s Artemis program — which relies on the heavy-lift SLS rocket and Orion crew capsule — is effectively sunsetted in this plan. Both vehicles will be used on three scheduled missions, but no further launches are planned. The budget points to the SLS’s $4 billion per-launch cost and notes that it is more than 140% over budget.

In place of these government-led systems, the White House proposes shifting to commercial launch providers for future crew and cargo missions to the Moon. The administration frames the move as both fiscally responsible and essential to maintaining momentum in the face of global competition.

The administration writes: “The Budget funds a program to replace SLS and Orion flights to the Moon with more cost-effective commercial systems that would support more ambitious subsequent lunar missions. The
Budget also proposes to terminate the Gateway, a small lunar space station in development with international partners, which would have been used to support future SLS and Orion missions.”

Mars Sample Return Canceled, Future Missions Reimagined

The highly anticipated Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission is canceled in the proposal, with the administration citing severe cost overruns and delays that would push any returns into the 2030s. The White House instead argues that upcoming human missions to Mars will fulfill MSR’s scientific goals more effectively and efficiently.

The cancellation eliminates one of NASA’s flagship science missions, and reverses decades of planning. MSR was seen as a capstone to the agency’s robotic exploration of Mars and was a key international partnership effort with the European Space Agency.

Deep Cuts to Science, Tech, and Climate

Alongside program cancellations, the budget includes widespread cuts to NASA’s research and support programs:

• Space Science sees a $2.3 billion reduction, eliminating low-priority missions.
• Earth Science is cut by $1.16 billion, restructuring the Landsat Next program and ending development of several climate-monitoring satellites.
• Space Technology loses $531 million, with the elimination of failing propulsion projects and a reorientation toward near-term lunar tech.
• Mission Support, which includes NASA workforce operations and facilities, is trimmed by $1.13 billion.
• Aeronautics programs, especially those tied to green aviation and climate change, are cut by $346 million.
• STEM Education programs are reduced by $143 million, with the administration stating that the next generation will be inspired by bold missions rather than formal educational efforts.

The administration’s messaging frames these cuts as strategic realignments rather than neglect, arguing that funds are being redirected toward the most pressing opportunities in human exploration.

The American Astronomical Society, however, expressed “grave concerns” about the budgets effect on basic science, according to a statement.

They write: “If enacted, the 56% cut to the National Science Foundation, the 47% cut to NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, and the 14% cut to the Department of Energy’s Office of Science would result in an historic decline of American investment in basic scientific research. These cuts would damage a broad range of research areas that will not be supported by the private sector.”

ISS Drawdown and the Commercial Future of Low Earth Orbit

The budget also proposes a $508 million reduction in funding for the International Space Station. Crew capacity and scientific research aboard the ISS will be scaled back as NASA prepares for a transition to privately operated space stations. The ISS is still on track for decommissioning by 2030, and the administration sees commercial providers stepping in to fill the void in low Earth orbit.

This mirrors a broader theme of the FY2026 budget: shifting NASA from operator to anchor customer, relying on a growing commercial space industry to deliver capabilities that were once exclusively government-run.

A Leaner, Faster NASA?

Overall, the FY2026 discretionary request outlines a smaller, more narrowly focused NASA. The agency will still pursue ambitious goals — chief among them a return to the Moon and a human landing on Mars — but with fewer legacy programs, reduced scientific breadth and an accelerated reliance on private sector collaboration.

It’s important to note that Congress will have the final say on whether to accept, reject, or modify these changes. But if adopted as proposed, the budget marks a defining pivot in the U.S. space program: away from institutional permanence, and toward geopolitical urgency and commercial speed.