NASA researchers detail chaos within agency amid Trump's proposed dismantling of leading U.S. climate research facility, dubbing the situation as a "complete disaster."
A Nightmarish Twist for NASA's Climate Mavericks
NASA scientists find themselves in a tempestuous limbo, as the Trump administration considering axing one of the U.S.'s premier climate research centers: the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, or GISS. Instead, the administration intends to fold some of the lab's responsibilities into a broader cross-agency environmental modeling project.
With careers precariously hanging in the balance, career specialists are working from home, waiting for more details and growing increasingly worried about their future at GISS. If the lab gets shuttered, it could jeopardize its prestigious status and the nation's leadership role in global climate science, sources warn.
"It's a goddamn mess," a GISS scientist shared anonymously, given they weren't authorized to speak to the press. "Spirits at GISS have never been lower, and it feels like we're being left high and dry by NASA management."
"We're supposedly being merged into this new virtual NASA modeling institute," the insider explained. "But there's no clarity on what that even means."
NASA defends its budget proposal, stressing the lab's future importance. "NASA's GISS holds a significant place in the annals of space science, and its work remains critical for the Earth Science Division’s modeling endeavors and future aspirations," NASA spokesperson Cheryl Warner stated. "Main contributions from GISS directly impact everyday life by revealing the Earth system connections that affect the air we breathe, human health, food production, and urban populations."
GISS boasts a storied history in climate science, tracing back to the early '60s. Founding Father James Hansen, former head of the institute, first brought national attention to man-made global warming in a heated Senate hearing during the sweltering summer of '88. The lab is still revered worldwide for its planetary modeling, allowing scientists to make predictions about climate change's potential impact on global temperatures, precipitation, extreme weather events, and more.
The approximately 125 scientists based at GISS are also renowned for tracking global temperatures, with GISS' records serving as an indispensable check on other global warming monitoring labs worldwide. The lab stands out due to its groundbreaking work on global warming, volcanic and aerosol climate forcing, and climate change impact detection and attribution.
"All research that was driven by curiosity and enabled by the autonomy we had at GISS was crucial in unlocking the mysteries of global warming," the scientist said, adding: "There's a cloud hanging over all of us because we have no clue about leadership's long-term plan. It feels like we're just being left to wither away."
Another GISS scientist, who spoke under the same veil of anonymity, emphasized the importance of the lab's independence in propelling its success. The freedom and autonomy GISS received due to its distance from NASA headquarters in D.C. allowed researchers to undertake crucial studies that might not have been pursued otherwise, they shared.
Unlike top-level NASA managers, GISS' leadership received high praise for their effective communication and advocacy of the center's work, as per three researchers.
"It's crucial that climate modeling persists," one of the GISS researchers admitted. "They're our best bet for the planet."
A technical NASA budget breakdown, released late last week, mentioned "strengthening America's dominance in space exploration while practicing fiscal responsibility." The Republicans' proposed NASA budget includes funding for climate modeling but slashes funding for space exploration and overall Earth science. Numerous space exploration missions and satellites would be shelved under the budget, including some already in space that are sending crucial climate data earthward.
The budget breakdown makes the GISS' future both crystal clear and disconcertingly vague. It declares that Earth system modeling activities at four different NASA centers will converge into a "virtual institute." This would integrate "core GISS capabilities as necessary," the document reads. "GISS as a standalone entity will not survive."
This scenario may be less disastrous for NASA's climate scientists than the grim outlook at agencies like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, where the budget for nearly the entire weather and climate research portfolio would be wiped out, and most research labs would close.
Overall, the NASA budget would face a 24% cut compared to last year, with a 47% reduction in agency science activities, according to The Planetary Society, an organization that promotes space science and innovation. Their analysis found that the proposed NASA funding level would be the tiniest since 1961 when adjusted for inflation. Ultimately, the fate of climate modeling at NASA, along with space exploration activities, will be left to the discretion of Congress as they review the budget proposal, adding even more uncertainty to an already dire situation for GISS' staff.
- The potential shutdown of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), a renowned center for climate science, could impact environmental-science policy and legislation, given its contributions to global climate science and predictions about climate change's effects.
- The politicians' proposed NASA budget, which includes funding for climate modeling but slashes funding for space exploration and Earth science, raises questions about the future of general-news topics such as climate-change and science, particularly considering the integral role of GISS in these areas.
- While the proposed budget for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration could face even more drastic changes, with nearly its entire weather and climate research portfolio at risk, the uncertain future of GISS remains a significant concern within the realm of science and policy-and-legislation, given its contributions to understanding and predicting climate change.
