The nation’s space agency has budgeted more than half a billion dollars to cover retirement funds due to thousands of workers at a long-term shuttle contractor.
With the final space shuttle flying, many wonder, what’s next? Well, tighten your seat belt. The second great space race is about to begin and it could shave two to three years off astronauts' down time without something American to fly.
The end of NASA’s space shuttle program will limit U.S. manned flight in the short term but is unlikely to threaten the country's long-term competitiveness in the space sector.
Our special report, "NASA: The Next Generation," explores the impact of the space shuttle's end to the future of the agency and America's place in space.
As the U.S. moves closer to the so-called "Fiscal Cliff", big ticket government spending areas like defense programs are likely to be at the center of the debate.