NASA cancels x-ray telescope mission

Science : NASA has canceled the Gravity and Extreme Magnetism Small Explorer (GEMS) mission because it was expected to go over budget. Scheduled for launch in 2014, GEMS would have studied black holes and neutron stars. The project’s cost had been capped at $119 million, but because the technology needed for the instrument took longer to develop than expected, the final cost would have exceeded that amount by 20–30%, according to an independent external review.