As NASA faced a mission price tag and timeline for the Mars Sample Return mission that the administrator called “unacceptable,” the agency is turning to both its various centers around the country and to the private sector to find workable solutions. Administrator Bill Nelson said MSR remains one of NASA’s highest priorities and he said he was optimistic about what may come their way.
This news came the same week that NASA gave the green light to the Dragonfly mission. The $3.35 billion undertaking will send a robotic rotorcraft to explore Saturn’s moon, Titan, starting in 2034.
These are just some of the topics touched on in this week’s News from the Press Site. Spaceflight Now’s Will Robinson-Smith is joined by Marina Koren, staff writer for The Atlantic, and Jack Kuhr, research editor for Payload Space.