Science Museum cash crisis

A gaping budgetary hole could force the Science Museum to sell off up to 95 per cent of the manuscripts stored in its library.

Falling government grants and a four-fold increase in service fees charged by Imperial College, which houses the collection, have left the South Kensington museum with a £200,000 annual shortfall.

Executives are to consult the public over options for the future.

Manuscripts include the first Renaissance translation of Ptolemy and Nasa's final Apollo 11 flight plan, signed by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin.