What's new in the NSF proposed 2026 budget

NSF budgeting time NSF's fiscal year 2026 budget request to Congress was released
on Friday 30 May 2025...

It's a 225-page pdf available here. Of course, it has to wend its way through Congress over the next...year or ?? The big numbers...tne NSF budgets for FY 2024 and 2025 each totaled about $9 billion. The total budget request for FY 2026 is $4.144 billion, a 55.3% reduction. I'll dig into some details about the effects on the Antarctic program below and link to some of the relevant pages.

First, the simple (?) stuff...if I read things right, the ongoing infrastructure maintenance and logistics numbers are about the same as in the 2024 budget--$472 million for infrastructure and $109.3 million for logistics per this page. But...that page also lists a 70.9% reduction in polar research funding--from $86 million to $25 million. Jumping to another page which addresses "major facilities funding" there is a line item for "Antarctic Facilities and Operations (AFO)" for $263 million, about the same as for 2024. Not sure how this number relates to the $472 million for infrastructure maintenance. Versus operations? But also note that the IceCube funding listed here has been cut in half from $7.94 million to $4 million. And elsewhere it is noted that the lease for the Nathaniel B. Palmer will be terminated in fiscal year 2026. That vessel is currently at San Vicente, Talcahuano, Chile for a hazardous waste transfer, and there are no future planned cruise operations on the schedule. Also...not mentioned in the NSF budget proposal because it is in NASA's budget...all their "Scientific Balloon Projects" including, of course the Long Duration Balloon project at McMurdo, are being canceled.

The budget request includes a fairly detailed discussion of the major Antarctic construction projects under the heading "Major Research Equipment and Construction Account." Of course there are acronyms...including: Antarctic Infrastructure Recapitalization (AIR) which is defined as "a portfolio of investments in facilities and infrastructure across U.S. Antarctic Program (USAP) stations and gateways that will assure safety, enhance efficiency, increase resilience, and support USAP’s continued scientific leadership on the continent." To highlight a few...work is continuing this winter on the McMurdo dorm (Lodging Building); it is scheduled for occupancy in time for the 2026 winter. Work resumed briefly on the new heavy shop (VEOC) in 2023. It and he rest of the McMurdo redevelopment otherwise known as AIMS is on hold (2 June WEVC-TV (Norfolk) news article).

Many other major projects are listed on pages beginning here. I'll mention a few...the McMurdo barge pier is on schedule to be brought down at the end of the 2025-26 summer and ready for use the following season; jacking up the blue buildings at Pole may start with ARO (the NOAA building) in 2026-27; some Pole arch and utility repairs (as well as a new Rodwell?) may happen i 2025-26; continuing upgrade to the McM power plant switchgear may complete in 2026-27. Further out in the planning stages: new Doppler radar and TACAN equipment for McMurdo; finishing the long-mothballed IT &C building at McM; more arch repair/replacement, a new Dark Sector substation (Building 61) and satcom antenna at Pole; and........

Palmer fuel tanks

...new fuel tanks for Palmer ?? The budget request says that only one tank is in use, it is to be replaced with several smaller ones. Upon further research...yes. Currently one tank is in use (although both could be)...the other one is kept in reserve as spill containment, as the current tanks have no secondary containment. The 125,000 gallon tanks that were installed in 1967 were perhaps sized to provide capability to fuel the R/V Hero and larger vessels. The 2016 Palmer master plan (link to relevant page) calls for replacing the current tanks with six 25,000 gallon horizontal tanks with contaimnent...these could be fabricated offsite.

The Palmer photo was cropped from a photo taken by Glenn Grant after the tanks had been painted black so they'd absorb more heat from the sun. And...the image at the top of the page is of a penguin piggy bank available from Amazon here.