Follow
Nice opinion column about #JPL in Pasadena's search for extraterrestrial life.
I'm sometimes asked how NASA decides what to do. The National Academies of Science provide NASA with a "decadal survey" as overall guidelines. The Academies declared several decades ago that the search for extraterrestrial life should be the priority.
In the end, though, it's up to Congress, which is more interested in protecting jobs in their districts/states.