Speaking at the White House , Trump seemed to lend funding to NASA ’s commercial partnership , which include funding companies like SpaceX and Boeing via the Commercial Crew Development program . The bill also loosely keeps the goal of get humans to orb Mars by 2033 .

" With this legislation , we suffer NASA ’s scientists , engine driver , cosmonaut , and their pursuit of discovery , " Trump said during the issue . " This bill will ensure that NASA ’s most important and effective programs are confirm . ”

This peculiar bill , whichpassed Congressearlier this year , is different from the $ 19.1 billion budget Trump proposed the other daylight forfiscal year 2018 . That budget involve canceling the Europa lander , terminate a mission to explore an asteroid , scrapping NASA ’s Office of Education , and ending involvement in several Earth observation artificial satellite . If that budget ever goes though , it will certainly not maintain NASA ’s program .

One interesting part of the banknote refers to the Apollo landing place sites , as noted byCollectSpace . There have been calls latterly to ensure they are protected from scathe by future mission .

This bill attempts to address that , noting that the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy should reckon into “ protect and preserving historically important Apollo political program lunar landing place sites and Apollo program artifacts lodge in on the lunar surface . ”

You might believe that ’s a bit cockamamie . After all , no human has gear up foundation on the Moon since 1972 , and since 1976 only one remote-controlled mission – China ’s Chang’e 3 lander and rover – has touched down there . But in late years , several companies and nations have announce plans to go back .

By the end of this year , we ’re expect to see several individual party shoot down on the Moon as part of theGoogle Lunar XPRIZE , and one team even wanted torevisit the Apollo 17 site . So the nib calls for novel lawmaking to ensure the sites are protect , without going into particular .

The bill also reintroduce the National Space Council , asomewhat controversialcouncil that will supervise US space policy , headed by Vice President Mike Pence . It wo n’t be until next fiscal class , though , that we really see Trump ’s plans for NASA take hold , which might admit focalize on the Moon or Mars .

Does Trump himself want to go to Mars ? I ’m not sure , but I ’ll let you know if I incur out .