The telescope and its science are degraded, NASA officials say; given the current climate of stopgap budget deals and correspondingly tighter purse strings, the agency has chosen to hasten the telescope's end, freeing up most of the $68 million per year currently spent on it in the next five years.
More importantly, ending the telescope would leave a considerable x-ray blind spot in U.S. (and global) astronomy, with no telescope currently in service or active development that could replicate or expand upon Chandra's capabilities.
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