NASA astronaut Anne McClain took these photographs of lightning from the International Space Station in late May. Credit: NASA
Like many of you, I’ve been closely following the White House’s fiscal 2026 budget proposal and the potential impacts to NASA and other agencies that must figure out how to make do with much less money. While members of Congress will have their own ideas about which research and missions are worth preserving — as the saying goes, “the president proposes, the Congress disposes” — it seems inevitable that there will be some cuts. For those of you who have devoted years if not decades to these projects and programs, I know it is heartbreaking to contemplate saying goodbye. If you have ideas about stories we should pursue or want to share your personal experiences, please reach out.
I hope the stories in these pages and on the revamped Aerospace America website continue to inspire and motivate you. Our Looking Back history column is always one of my favorites because of the many hidden gems — milestones I’d forgotten about or weren’t aware of that played a part in bringing the aerospace industry to where it is today. I’d like to highlight a few entries that share some connection with other stories in this issue: the 1925 crash of the USS Shenandoah airship and the spaceflights in the 2000s to assemble the International Space Station.
I’ve often marveled at the circular nature of this industry, in that sometimes it feels like there are no “new” problems, just variations of the same ones. See, for example, our feature story on developing life support technology for the future commercial space stations. These aspiring operators are grappling with many of the same questions and challenges that NASA did for ISS — which itself is coming up on 25 years of continuous human presence later this year. NASA’s commercial LEO program was one of the few to get an increase in the fiscal 2026 proposal, but as anyone involved in technology development knows all too well, more funding isn’t always enough to guarantee success.
On the topic of air travel, the Shenandoah crash reminded me of the high standards for aircraft designers and builders, particularly when the most precious of cargo will be aboard. Safety continues to be a driving force today, as you can see from our Engineering Notebook about the next steps in Airbus’ quest to develop a hydrogen airliner, as well as this month’s Big Question on the emerging advanced air mobility market.
Speaking of history, I’d be remiss not to also direct you to the first article of our three-part Goddard Centennial Series, which kicks off our coverage of next year’s anniversary of the first liquid-fueled rocket launch. One could reasonably argue that without that three-second flight on March 16, 1926, we wouldn’t be having discussions today about sending humans to Mars — much less in the next decade. For this series, historians Roger Launius and Jonathan Coopersmith will unearth facts and details about Robert Goddard that you might not know and the role they played in his technical achievements. I had a blast editing the first article, which describes the methodical approach that Goddard took in assessing various methods for reaching orbit before he determined that liquid propulsion was the most feasible and practical. I was reminded of the same scientific method we still rely on today.
These past endeavors remind me that change rarely comes without struggle, even if the end result is positive. But I remain hopeful that the human spirit is capable of rising to any challenge, of meeting any moment, no matter how challenging — so long as we never forget what we are fighting for.
