<p>The Trump Administration has big plans for space exploration &ndash; primarily to boost the private space industry and to return the United States to space dominance. ;</p>
<p>In his inaugural address on January 20th, President Trump vowed to &ldquo;unlock the mysteries of space.&rdquo; Congress could help with this promise by securing funding for the Space Launch System &ndash; a rocket booster that is vital to NASA&rsquo;s proposed missions to the moon and Mars. ;</p>
<p>Many Republicans argue that NASA should not be involved in Earth science, and it is possible that Trump will redirect the $2+ billion NASA currently spends on global warming science to space exploration. ;</p>
<p>&ldquo;The draft<em> NASA Transition Authorization Act of 2017</em> maintains continuity of purpose across a broad array of NASA programs and initiatives,&rdquo; explains Rep. Brian Babin (R-TX). &ldquo;It continues support for a robust and well-planned human exploration program that includes not only the Space Launch System and Orion programs but also commercial crew and cargo programs, among others.&rdquo;</p>
<p>These other programs will be important in the near future. As former House Speaker Newt Gingrich explains, &ldquo;The Trump Administration would like a lot more aggressive, risk-taking, competitive entrepreneurial approach to space.&rdquo; ;</p>
<p>The Trump Administration seems torn between the entrepreneurs that represent &ldquo;new space&rdquo; and the entitles (like NASA) that we identify with &ldquo;old space.&rdquo; ;</p>
<p>The situation is a &ldquo;big fight,&rdquo; admits former Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Robert Walker. &ldquo;There are billions of dollars at stake. It has come to a head now when it has become clear to the space community that the real innovative work is being done outside NASA.&rdquo; ;</p>
<p>According to <em>Politico</em>, Trump&rsquo;s goals include the creation of privately owned space stations, an &ldquo;affordable&rdquo; return to the moon by 2020, and the claiming of properties on the moon for US citizens. ;</p>
<p>The administration&rsquo;s ambitious vision could &ldquo;see private American astronauts, on private space ships, circling the moon by 2020; and private lunar landers staking out de facto &lsquo;property rights&rsquo; for Americans on the moon, by 2020 as well,&rdquo; reads a plan drawn up by the president&rsquo;s transition team. ;</p>
<p>These proposed strategies appeal to President Trump&rsquo;s business background and have the potential to ignite an entirely new industry.</p>
<p>President Trump has not yet announced his pick for NASA director, but many expect him to choose Rep. Jim Bridenstine (R-OK) &ndash; a Navy vet and the former head of the Air and Space Museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma. ;</p>
<p><strong>Editor&#8217;s note:</strong> NASA is one of the most successful agencies ever to exist, but President Trump the next phase has to be built by commercial enterprises with a profit motive. When we can start bringing profitable resources back to Earth from space, the space industry will be self sustaining forever.</p>