Roughly one hundred space advocates gathered outside NASA headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Monday to protest deep reductions proposed in the White House’s fiscal-year 2026 budget request for the agency. Demonstrators held placards, chanted and drew attention with steady car-horn support during the late-morning rally, which unfolded within view of the Capitol and the White House. Local television station WUSA-9 conducted interviews at the scene as participants warned that the cuts, if enacted, would scale back planetary science missions and other research programs. The protest, organized under the slogan “Embrace the Challenge,” reflects growing concern across the U.S. space community that lower federal funding could slow exploration initiatives and technology development.