The NASA budget since 1995

For my accompanying blog, see “NASA’s (really) declining budget,” April 8, 2021.

Graph of NASA's Budget. NASA purchase power has dropped 20% since 1995. As of this mid-March update, NASA now has an approved budget for 2022 (full text available here). Note that rather than use the NASA inflation indices for 2021 and the forward value recommended for 2022, the purchase power calculation here tentatively uses higher rates of inflation. This is reasonable, as NASA inflation indices usually closely track broad US economic inflation indices. Therefore it is reasonable to expect that once updated, the NASA inflation indices, focused on aerospace, will track the broader inflation rates for 2021 and 2022. In 2021, the broader US yearly inflation rate was 7%. For 2022, to date, it is trending at 7.9% (source.) Credit: Edgar Zapata, zapatatalksnasa.com
NASA purchase power has dropped 20% since 1995. As of this mid-March update, NASA now has an approved budget for 2022 (full text available here). Note that rather than use the NASA inflation indices for 2021 and the forward value recommended for 2022, the purchase power calculation here tentatively uses higher rates of inflation. This is reasonable, as NASA inflation indices usually closely track broad US economic inflation indices. Therefore it is reasonable to expect that once updated, the NASA inflation indices, focused on aerospace, will track the broader inflation rates for 2021 and 2022. In 2021, the broader US yearly inflation rate was 7%. For 2022, to date, it is trending at 7.9% (source.) Credit: Edgar Zapata, zapatatalksnasa.com

Notes:

  1. 2021 Biological/Physical Science moved from inside ISS R&D to Science line. (Not one for one; ISS R&D drop 2X larger than new line)
  2. Commercial LEO 2020 $15M, 2021 $17M