I'm not surprised, unfortunately.

Well, the new budget for NASA axes both the plan to return to the Moon by 2020, and the Ares rocket, the planned replacement for the Space Shuttles, which are scheduled to be retired this year.

My two bits is that they will extend the Shuttles usage until we have another disaster of some kind, and then stop flying them.

And that will be the end of the US's manned space program. We're already so deeply into financial mismanagement at all levels that nothing like the space program could possibly get started, and I don't think we'll ever see it even restart.

And that popping noise you heard? That was another dream getting busted.