Greason: Even Santa Claus Couldn’t Save NASA’s Moon Program

It doesn't look like we're going to the moon with Altair. Perhaps Santa Claus and his reindeer could take us there instead.

XCOR CEO and Augustine Commission member Jeff Greason says that even Santa Claus couldn’t save NASA’s plan to send humans to the moon and Mars. The Orlando Sentinel reports:

“We are on a path right now for a system on a close order of just double the budget to operate,” said panel member Jeff Greason of Constellation, which stemmed from President George W. Bush’s 2005 “vision” to return Americans to the moon by 2020 and then move on to Mars.

Greason added that if Santa Claus gave the program to the country fully developed, NASA would still have to cancel it because the agency could not afford to launch it.

Ouch! (Santa could not be reached for comment, although NASA is rumored to be on his “Naughty” after a joint partnership to develop hypersonic technology fell apart back in ’08.)

The problem? A serious disconnect between resources and ambition:

The Augustine Panel re-examining NASA’s human spaceflight plans has concluded that the agency’s current Constellation Program to return astronauts to the moon by 2020 will not fit into the current presidential budget.

In fact, the panel has found that President Barack Obama’s current budget does not allow for any significant human exploration program.

Pathetic. Looks like we’ll need a Christmas miracle to get back to the moon. A Christmas in August miracle.