A House committee is planning to advance legislation Wednesday to set NASA’s priorities for upcoming space exploration and research.
The House Science, Space and Technology Committee will mark up H.R. 7273, the “NASA Reauthorization Act of 2026,” which would help guide the agency’s work as it embarks on high-profile missions such as landing humans on the moon again.
The bill contains a host of provisions that will shape NASA’s use of satellite data, including for agricultural applications, wildland fire mitigation and space weather monitoring. The bill would also help NASA advance efforts to explore space resources, including critical minerals.
The legislation — sponsored by Science Chair Brian Babin (R-Texas) and ranking member Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) — would put in statute a requirement for NASA to conduct wildfire science and mitigation research through an existing program called FireSense.
