JPL To Cut 5% of Workforce, Its Third Layoff This Year (behindtheblack.com) 42
An anonymous reader writes: JPL in California announced this week a layoff of 325 workers, about 5% of its workforce, the third major layoff imposed this year.
The JPL press release indicates the layoffs are because of NASA budget cutbacks, but does not provide any specificity. The cause centers mostly around NASA's decision to pause its Mars Sample Return project, which JPL was leading. From this report:
The JPL press release indicates the layoffs are because of NASA budget cutbacks, but does not provide any specificity. The cause centers mostly around NASA's decision to pause its Mars Sample Return project, which JPL was leading. From this report:
This is the third round of layoffs at JPL this year, a reduction spurred primarily by major budgetary cuts to the Mars Sample Return mission, which is managed by JPL. NASA directed $310 million this year to the effort to bring Mars rocks back to Earth, a steep drop from the $822.3 million it spent on the program the previous year.
NASA is basically going to shut down (Score:5, Insightful)
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It's called SpaceX
I do like to remind people that the most significant source of funding for SpaceX has been NASA.
SpaceX's first major customer was NASA, which supported SpaceX to design and build the Falcon-9 rocket and Dragon capsule for Space Station resupply (and, later, for crew launch).
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SpaceX's first major customer was NASA, which supported SpaceX to design and build the Falcon-9 rocket and Dragon capsule for Space Station resupply (and, later, for crew launch).
And I wouldn't be surprised if Elon's new objective is to pull the ladder from underneath SpaceX so that NASA doesn't create or support any future competitors to SpaceX's newly established, effective monopoly on the US space industry.
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Exactly. And lets not forget Musk will need to spin it since he decries "government handouts".
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Teaching children about space exploration is socialism. Star Trek proves that.
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It's like people who think Homelander is the hero in "The Boys". I can't even...
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Conservationism is about maintaining hierarchies. Hierarchy in government, hierarchy in class, and in wealth.
Personal liberty, a frequent right wing talking point, is not the same as equality or egalitarianism. You can be right wing and believe the law should be applied equally to rich and poor. But a right winger would not expect that a poor person deserves the same respect, the same access to education, or should be offered any protection above anyone else.
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It's a chaotic situation and difficult to predict. Republican politicians seem to be very bad at getting anything from Trump, and Trump seems very good at making them fall in line. So maybe the pork barreling will end.
Musk tried working with Trump in the previous Trump administration and gave up in frustration. Maybe this time will be different, and SpaceX will get all of NASA's work because Musk wants the money, or Trump decides he can take credit or skim something from it.
Or maybe it'll all get shut d
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It's a chaotic situation and difficult to predict. Republican politicians seem to be very bad at getting anything from Trump, and Trump seems very good at making them fall in line. So maybe the pork barreling will end.
My guess is that there will just be fewer barrels, and the biggest one will be labeled "SpaceX."
Musk tried working with Trump in the previous Trump administration and gave up in frustration. Maybe this time will be different, and SpaceX will get all of NASA's work because Musk wants the money, or Trump decides he can take credit or skim something from it.
See above.
Or maybe it'll all get shut down as part of 'trimming the fat'. After all, that's going to be Elon's job and he might be forced to do it over his SpaceX conflict of interest. It's not like the Republican base is pro-science, or worried about hurting themselves with the cutbacks they have been conditioned to demand.
I don't see how shutting down NASA conflicts with Elon Musk's interest. Mind you, I don't think it will happen, because Musk still wants NASA as a customer.
I wouldn't bet on any particular outcome.
Nor would I, except one: SpaceX is going to grow significantly.
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Depending on how chummy Musk and Trump can become this go-around, I could see NASA becoming a direct funnel for money to SpaceX. While in the short-term, that's probably a positive for space launch enthusiasts, as SpaceX is the fastest, most proficient launcher today, ultimately it'll be a loss as competition is driven out of business altogether. I'd like to see the legacy shitbird brigade lose their cost-plus perpetual contracts that spend billions on vaporware every year, but I'd still like to see some of
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The JPL projects were highly likely to be launched by SpaceX boosters. You seem to be confused about whose budget is being cut.
I agree the pork project of the other booster, carefully distributed to many states to get support from as many congress as possible, should be cancelled. But JPL has nothing to do with that.
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We need competition within the launch vehicle sector if we're going to continue to see launch costs drop as SpaceX has always promised they will. They get monopoly power and it'd just be shuffling off the old shitbirds for a brand new, much bigger single shitbird. I'm not down with that clown.
I'm no fan of Musk, but SpaceX has been doing good work and launch costs are dropping even without meaningful competition. Starship is supposed to be cheaper, but we'll see.
Falcon Heavy (fully expended): 63,800kg to LEO, $150M per launch
SLS: 70,000kg to LEO, $2.5B per launch
It's... really hard to throw stones about "competition" when costs are >90% less than what NASA is giving us.
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We need competition within the launch vehicle sector if we're going to continue to see launch costs drop as SpaceX has always promised they will. They get monopoly power and it'd just be shuffling off the old shitbirds for a brand new, much bigger single shitbird. I'm not down with that clown.
I'm no fan of Musk, but SpaceX has been doing good work and launch costs are dropping even without meaningful competition. Starship is supposed to be cheaper, but we'll see.
Falcon Heavy (fully expended): 63,800kg to LEO, $150M per launch SLS: 70,000kg to LEO, $2.5B per launch
It's... really hard to throw stones about "competition" when costs are >90% less than what NASA is giving us.
I can't disagree with that. I just don't want to see SpaceX become the only launch vehicle provider, even if they have done some tremendous things to bring launch costs down. Maybe Musk's dreams of cheaper spaceflight would keep him on the straight and narrow when it comes to prices, but something tells me the ego would kick in once he was the only available player. I hate to say it, but we may get the chance to find out.
NASA priorities (Score:2)
It should be OK to ask government agencies to rank their programs, program budgets, priority, benefit to citizens in 5 years, and a 2, 5,10 year plan.
The current mess of baseline budgeting (4% growth without Congress voting), guarding and bring home your Congressional district's pork projects, and programs exist in perpetuity once created (sacred cows) should be changed.
NASA practical accomplishments list (Score:2)
Anyone care to list the accomplishments of NASA in the last 20 years which have practical benefits to ordinary citizens today?
Things in the 'in 5 years it will do X, cure cancer, zero G manufacturing in 5 years", and other future promises excluded."
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I looked, and excluding lots of promises of future benefits, there are few which give practical benefit ordinary citizens today.
Healthcare research, yes, is a promised benefit maybe sometime in the NASA future
https://issnationallab.org/pre... [issnationallab.org]
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER (FL), November 30, 2023 – How could studying liquid drops of protein solution in space help solve an Achilles’ heel in medicine production on Earth? Find out in the latest issue of Upward, official magazine of the International Space Sta
Rank, rate, prioritize and fund (Score:2)
Yes, government agencies need to rank, rate, prioritize and justify their programs.
And a lot of the programs may get delayed due to lack of funding or cancelled.
And the 10 year plan omits the, "we invented X 50 years ago" saga where they get perpetual funding forever based on not delivering practical benefits to ordinary citizens in the last 5 years.
Those practical benefits to ordinary citizens in the last 5 years will allow NASA to be compared to the NIH, FDA, and other agencies so that agencies with more
One minor light in the dark (Score:3)
Without that they can't repeal the Affordable Care Act, meaning pre-existing conditions protections will still exist (for now).
What's crazy to me is how many old farts here on
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You know ACA is an overwhelming success when Trump knew he can't even mention it in the campaign.
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What profits...what losses...do you even know what you are saying? This is a government agency so those "things" don't exist. Is it even possible for you to see something beyond the prism of socialism is good and capitalism is bad? Look NASA and it's old school contractors have wasted more money than we can even imagine with very little to show for it. It is time for a shake up because right now SpaceX is leaps and bounds in front of Nasa and Boeing when it comes to delivering and costs which are all good.
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While a complete shutdown is unlikely, what do you think ultimately comes from the US giving up the 'world police' role and becoming more isolationist again?
Ultimately, unless a war breaks out the US can't avoid, there will be personnel reductions across the services.
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Ultimately, unless a war breaks out the US can't avoid, there will be personnel reductions across the services.
Perfect! Generate a large number of unemployed people with no job prospects whose main skills are killing humans. What could possibly be wrong with this plan?
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Back in the day, you'd put them in post office sorting centers and occasionally they'd shoot up some posties.
But the Republicans want to shut down the USPS too, so I'm guessing homeless vets with PTSD shooting randomly? It'll be nice to see the violence somewhere other than a school.
NASA already heavily outsources (Score:2)
NASA already does privatize a lot. Most space probes are built by private companies and/or universities via contracts. That's partly why the category is called "Aerospace". It's a myth that NASA builds most of the space equipment themselves.
The problem with the new administration is that Don doesn't value science, he wants glory, and thus seeks photogenic missions, leaning toward manned missions.
Re: NASA is basically going to shut down (Score:2)
"My side didn't win, universe is ending"
Jesus won't you people shut up already?
You lost. Maybe you'll do better next time. Trump isn't Hitler.
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which 2 Trillion dollars are you going to be happy doing without?
Have fun win an anti-vaxxer in charge of health
And a Russian asset in charge of intelligence department
No not Trump, the other Russian asset.
A rapist & sex trafficker in charge of justice department
No not Trump, the other rapist pedo
Budget Cut (Score:2)
Technically correct, there was a budget cut in 2024, from $25.3 billion in 2023 down to $24.8 billion. That was after a budget increase from $24.0 billion in 2022.
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dogshit vendors (Score:2, Insightful)
NASA needs to stop spending money on crap vendors like Boeing. The faster Boeing offloads its space program the better.
NASA's high standards drive cost but when vendors flub the job cost really goes up.
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You understand those decisions are made by politicians, not NASA management, right? Congress makes those decisions.
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The contract with Boeing is written such that Boeing eats most the costs if things go wrong, not NASA. However, the side-effects of schedule slips etc. trickle to NASA.
And the contract was probably signed before Boeing's suckage was exposed.
Having a back-up vendor is a sound concept, though. I give NASA kudos for that one. In fact Boeing's screwups show why a back-up vendor is important. Suppose Musk grew too stoned over time and let slimy bean-counters run Space-X.
Poaching by the human spaceflight directorat (Score:2)