
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) will end 325 employees jobs, which is approximately 5% of its total task force; surprisingly, this is the third round of staff reduction this year.
Due to NASA’s Mars Sample Return mission, which aims to bring back Mars rocks to Earth for further studies, the budget drastically dropped from $822.3 million to $310 million this year.
Earlier in January, 100 on-site contractors were to be let go and in February, JPL reduced its staff by 8% by laying off 530 of its employees. JPL has successfully right-sized its workforce to 5,500 employees, with management anticipating a stable headcount moving forward.
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Challenges faced by Jet Propulsion Laboratory
The Mars Sample Return mission has faced a significant amount of technical difficulties. According to the 2023 review, it is clear that the mission is unlikely to meet its launch date of 2028 and could cost $11 billion, which is far from the initial budget of $5.3 billion.
NASA’s budget was immobile for many years, and experts had warned about its inadequate support for the agency’s ambitious goals. Since the Apollo era, the funding has dropped significantly, leading to concerns about the sustainability of NASA’s programmes.
US lawmakers seek to preserve JPL’s funding, especially when China is competing against Mars' sample return mission. The cutting of jobs was decided before the U.S. elections and it would take place regardless of its outcome.
However, the National Academics of Sciences stated that NASA’s funding is insufficient and the agency may need to cut certain missions or secure increased funding.