News Space NASA’s budget woes put ambitious space research at risk The Mars Sample Return mission and other planetary science efforts are most affected by cost cutting Using its drill, NASA’s Perseverance rover (lower left) collected material from a rock nicknamed Rochette in September 2021 as part of a plan to bring back samples to Earth. The agency’s recent budget woes have placed the sample return project in turmoil. JPL-Caltech/NASA Share this:EmailFacebookTwitterPinterestPocketRedditPrint By Adam Mann May 8, 2024 at 11:15 am Dreams of exploring the cosmos have crashed up against the harsh reality of budget cuts in the United States.