NASA compresses 25% Goddard campus reduction into months during federal shutdown

During the federal government shutdown, NASA accelerated a long-term campus reduction plan at Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. A 25% square-footage reduction originally planned by 2037 was compressed into months, with 13 buildings being emptied and padlocked by March 2026. Nearly 100 laboratories were displaced or discarded, raising congressional concerns about illegal implementation of an unapproved budget.