Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Jul 1986.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
89 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
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Who runs it and what they're paid
15 people listed on the 990; $1.7M paid to officers and key staff.
Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 8 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mark V Sykes | $251,399 | $262,687 | $251,857 | $215,829 | $213,540 | $208,247 |
| Melinda Dyar | $241,888 | $183,202 | $180,820 | $166,388 | $166,677 | — |
| Maurizio a Ienna-Balistreri | $186,274 | $201,307 | $192,384 | $160,904 | $158,042 | $156,324 |
| Bruce D Barnett | — | — | $188,630 | $197,940 | $192,594 | $189,875 |
| Amanda R Hendrix | $165,502 | $196,113 | $179,150 | $171,393 | $176,593 | $175,534 |
| Scott H Robinson | — | — | $174,880 | $184,004 | — | — |
| Jonathan M Lilly | $183,994 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Nathaniel Putzig | $182,127 | $175,167 | — | — | — | — |
Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.
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Questions the 990 asks
The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.
- Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
- Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Programs and updates
Explore planets, teach science, and share discoveries about our solar system.
Questions for Planetary Science Institute
Your first name shows with your question. Planetary Science Institute answers here, for everyone.
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The Planetary Science Institute (PSI) is an independent nonprofit science research and educational organization with an established record of excellence in solar system exploration, comparative planetology, science education and public outreach.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2025 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY25 | End FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $2.8M | $2.0M |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $1.1M | $960K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $5.7M | $4.8M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $2.2M | $1.5M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $3.4M | $3.2M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $772K | $227K | $545K | |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $9.4M | $8.9M | $542K | $1K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $1.2M | $1.0M | $150K | |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $1.0M | $881K | $123K | $42 |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $767K | $674K | $92K | $122 |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $19K | $7K | $11K | |
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $40K | $3K | $37K | |
| Investment management feesLn 11f | $3K | $3K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $80K | $34K | $46K | |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $36K | $27K | $8K | $465 |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $109K | $98K | $11K | |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $207K | $164K | $43K | |
| TravelLn 17 | $463K | $459K | $4K | |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $175K | $163K | $12K | $69 |
| InterestLn 20 | $7K | $6K | $2K | |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $233K | $202K | $30K | |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $37K | $37K | ||
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $2.5M | $2.5M | $39K | |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $214K | $64K | $150K | |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $17.3M | $15.4M | $1.9M | $2K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 Latest Viewing | $17.0M | $17.3M | −$238K | $3.2M | 990 PDF |
| FY2024 | $17.9M | $17.8M | $82K | $3.4M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $17.9M | $17.6M | $317K | $3.3M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $18.5M | $18.2M | $366K | $2.9M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 | $17.3M | $15.5M | $1.8M | $2.6M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 | $15.0M | $15.1M | −$78K | $760K | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2025 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $17,044,515 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 5 of 5 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $17,044,515 across 6 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $17,282,384 across 19 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $4,777,031 assets, 14 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $3,234,389 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2025 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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