This is no surprise from the administration, which has consistently tried to raise the earth science division above the others. (sciencemag.org)
One example from a few years ago, a manager for a materials science division was looking for a materials science engineer. (sciencemag.org)
Asked about the situation, Jim Green, director of the Planetary Science Division at NASA Headquarters says only, «We're continuing to study our options for long - range support of communication for our rovers and landed assets on Mars.» (scientificamerican.com)