On January 2, 2026, the library at the Goddard Space Flight Center was closed as part of what a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) official described as a long-planned “transformation.” The library contained historical records of past NASA missions that inform current projects, many of which are not digitized and therefore not available elsewhere.
Since his second inauguration on January 20, 2025, the Trump administration has fired thousands of NASA employees, including about one-third of the Flight Center’s workforce. Some remaining staff have expressed concern that the “transformation” has been chaotic and disorganized, and that little notice has been given before moving equipment or dismantling specialized laboratories. Staff have not been reassured that critical resources and spaces, such as the library, will be preserved or replaced. A NASA administrator dismissed these concerns, saying that access to digital content and books will continue and that nothing will be thrown out indiscriminately.