NASA is betting on cheaper missions as a way to sustain science. We built a database to check whether it works.

Comprehensive Scientific Impact Study by The Planetary Society

The Planetary Society has developed a comprehensive study and dashboard titled "Science Mission Impact" to evaluate NASA's increasing focus on lower-cost space missions. Aiming to test whether NASA's strategy of relying on cheaper missions to sustain science is effective, researchers conducted a detailed analysis of the performance of the agency's science missions.

Data Analysis of 143 Missions and Thousands of Papers

The research team built a massive database examining 143 NASA science missions and 148,534 peer-reviewed scientific papers generated from their data. The collected data allowed for a quantitative comparison of publication outputs, scientific impacts, and their relationships to budget scales across every science division within NASA.

Low Costs Cannot Replace Major Scientific Returns

The primary finding from the database reveals that in every science division, the cheapest missions cannot replace the scientific return delivered by larger, flagship missions. While lower-cost projects contribute valuable insights, the volume of data and scientific impact provided by large-scale missions remains indispensable for advancing space science.