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Nature 415, 730 (14 February 2002) | doi:10.1038/415730a

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European Space Agency: Tightening the purse strings

Sally Goodman1

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Science budgets are being trimmed at the European Space Agency. Sally Goodman talks to David Southwood, the man charged with deciding how the money should be saved.

"Nobody does space science who's not an optimist — it's a requirement of the job," observes David Southwood with a wry smile. It is just as well that Southwood, director of science at the European Space Agency (ESA), feels this way.