Between March 2020 and January 2025, the Goddard Space Flight Center reduced its workforce from 10,000 to 6,000 people, a 40% decrease. Although 600 employees were later rehired, the Government Accountability Office reported that NASA lost 22% of its civilian staff in 2025, impacting 25 of its 36 major projects.
The center, which led the development of the James Webb and Nancy Grace Roman telescopes, closed several facilities. In November 2025, the laboratory for manufacturing propulsion system components was shuttered, and its engineering team was reduced from 30 to 7 members. Other facilities, including optical detector labs and mechanical workshops, faced temporary closures.
NASA maintains that Goddard retains its core capabilities for mission development. The agency attributes facility closures to outdated infrastructure, such as an anechoic chamber not updated since 1997, and a shift toward outsourcing propulsion systems to private firms. A NASA audit found no legal violations, though it noted communication issues.
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine have formed a commission to evaluate the center's current technical capacity. Reports suggest that the mission assurance division lost half of its staff by July 2026. Goddard is currently working on the Habitable Worlds Observatory, a mass spectrometer for the Dragonfly mission, and the DAVINCI Venus probe.
