2 In paragraph 55, the word mollified means -
A irate or angered
B. embarrassed
Cappeased or soothed
D, motivated

Explanation:

to soften in feeling or temper, as a person; pacify; appease. to mitigate or reduce; soften: to mollify one's demands.

The amount of money spent on NASA is much less than the amount of money

spent on the Department of Defense, + The U.S. Department of Defense is the strongest in the world, as it uses funds that should actually be used by NASA.

Explanation:

The author shows a strong feeling toward the lack of funding towards NASA because they mentioned the ¨unfortunate¨ situations American astronauts are going through. This makes me believe that their opinion is based on funding NASA more than the U.S. Department of Defense.