flown-the-coop said:
Crazy thought… why not move NASA under DoW?
What was once a science / exploratory focus is likely to become more and more about security (military, economic, etc).
It was before my time, but surely this was debated when NASA was carved out.
It was deliberate choice by Ike to make NASA a civilian organization. At the time, the Navy and the Army both has rocketry and space programs. Ike consolidated it under NASA and made it civilian run, precisely to make sure its purpose goes beyond military objectives. Effectively, it was disparate programs under DoD before Ike changed that.
Civilian goals have always been at the forefront for NASA, but military goals have had tremendous impact as well. The shuttle program was shaped primarily by Air Force objectives.
