[cogitator]

It'd be a different world if we didn't have weather satellites, wouldn't it? (Whilst I acknowledge that weather satellites are usually thought of as the geostationary kind, the polar-orbiters give vital data, such as sea surface temperature, to the weather models. SST is particularly vital to hurricane "ferocity" predictions and the likelihood of intensification or de-intensification.

I don't like pork, but I'd sure be in favor of upping the NASA budget for this category. I was thinking about how privatization might work, but if a private company launched a weather satellite, they're top client would probably be the National Weather Service (aka NOAA). With no competitors, there wouldn't be much price restraint, so I don't think it would save money.

Any ideas?

[steel_resolve]

Yeah, I got one - How about Europe and China stop with the Galileo project that will compete with our GPS offering and instead carry some of the dame weight of the world when it comes to paying for things everybody benefits from?

[.cnI redruM]

No, you have to whack the program. Yes, it causes problems. However, if we don't say no to a contractor who is xx% over budget and draw the line somewhere, we can expect every future contract for this sort of work to come at least xx% over budget. The contractors will believe that this is the new acceptable standard.

[The_Victor]

Two points:

1) NASA's budget has not been cut. The money for those projects has been redirected to higher priority expeditions.

2)NOAA should be funded to handle weather satellites.

[Oh Brother]

"and $4 billion for developing future missions to the moon and Mars"

I suspect that some or most of that $4 billion is being used for a shuttle replacement. While the replacement may be used for future missions to the moon and Mars, that really isn't correct to group it with that just like the shuttle is used for environmental and science missions, but isn't grouped with those areas either.

[N. Theknow]

Latest satellite images suggest a vernal equinox will occur and that global warming will increase at an accelerated rate afterward.

[Pessimist]

"I don't like pork, but I'd sure be in favor of upping the NASA budget for this category."

Spoken like a true "Republican".

[Always Right]

Any ideas?

This sounds like the typical bureaucratic BS. When they cut your funding, insteading of cutting your waster, cut the vital stuff.