A compromise spending plan for NASA averts cancellation of the James Webb Space Telescope, but caps development of the Hubble successor observatory at $8 billion.
The Webb telescope has racked up about $5 billion in cost overruns and more money is needed to keep it on track for launch in 2018, a date NASA has pledged to stick with, even if it means delaying other space science probes.
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A House and Senate conference committee hammered out the details Tuesday in a $17.8 billion budget for NASA for the 2012 fiscal year, which began Oct. 1. Legislators warned that the Webb telescope program would face additional scrutiny if cost overruns continued.
A House bill would have canceled the telescope, which scientists want to expand the envelope of the visible universe beyond what Hubble can see.
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The spending plan is expected to be voted on by the full House on Wednesday.
Image: JWST's prime mirrors undergoing tests (NASA)
Tags: Astronomy, Hubble Telescope, NASA, Telescopes
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