Trump's $6 Billion "Golden Age of Science" Aims at Mars, Quantum and Cures. Now Congress Has to Fund It
The White House rolled out more than $6 billion in public and private science commitments on Oct. 8, from a nuclear spacecraft to Mars to a revived program for math-gifted kids. In our view, the ambition is right, but deep proposed cuts to basic research would undercut it.
By Clara Hughes
ALTAS WORLD NEWS OPINION | By Clara Hughes, Chief Opinion Editor | October 11, 2026 | 6-min read From the Manhattan Project to the moon landing, America has always done its greatest science when it aimed at something big. On Thursday, the White House tried to recapture that spirit. At its "Science: A New Golden Age" summit, the administration announced more than $6 billion in commitments from federal agencies, companies, universities and philanthropies [1]. The package ranges from a nuclear-powered spacecraft to Mars to a revived program for math-gifted schoolchildren [1]. In our view, the ambition is exactly right. But a golden age cannot be built on private pledges alone. It also needs a federal research budget Congress is willing to fund. Key Takeaways Eleven companies pledged $2.4 billion in super intelligence tools and compute credits for the Genesis Mission Consortium, led by NVIDIA at $1 billion [1]. NASA and the Energy Department agreed to develop Space Reactor-1, a nuclear-powered spacecraft to Mars expected to launch in 2028, and Lunar Reactor-1, a fission reactor for the moon's surface [1]. The administration's proposed 2027 budget would cut overall federal R&D spending by 22% and NSF support by more than 50%, Physics World reports [2]. Here is why this matters to you. Federal