The 38-page document, released Wednesday, paints the manufacturer’s quality control practices as inadequate and its workforce as insufficiently trained, blaming it for cost increases and schedule delays in the development of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) Block 1B. Yet the space agency has neglected to punish Boeing financially for these flaws, arguing that doing so would run contrary to the terms of its contract.

The heavy-lift rocket, a more powerful configuration of NASA’s existing SLS Block 1, is intended to make its maiden voyage in 2028 on the Artemis IV mission, a crewed lunar landing. It has been under development since 2014. Boeing is under contract to build Block 1B’s Exploration Upper Stage (EUS)—which will increase the SLS’ cargo capacity by about 40 percent—as well as the core stages for Block 1 on Artemis I and the upcoming Artemis II. Other SLS contractors include Aerojet Rocketdyne and Northrop Grumman.

A Day Late, A Dollar Short

Originally, the EUS was allocated a budget of $962 million and intended to fly on Artemis II, which in January was pushed to no earlier than September 2025. But by the OIG’s estimate, EUS costs are expected to balloon to $2 billion through 2025 and reach $2.8 billion by the time Artemis IV lifts off in 2028.

The office projects total SLS Block 1B costs will hit $5.7 billion before then—that’s more than $700 million over the Agency Baseline Commitment (ABC) NASA made last year. The EUS, at nearly triple its original budget, would account for close to half of those costs.

Add to that an expected six-year delay in the delivery of the system, and the OIG predicts Artemis IV’s launch could be postponed.

“NASA’s fiscal year 2024 SLS Program budget projections do not account for the additional funds needed for EUS development in fiscal years 2024 through 2027,” the report says. “Without additional funding, scheduled work will continue to be pushed into subsequent years as has been the case for the EUS over the last decade, leading to further cost increases and schedule delays.”

For example, the OIG says, NASA is evaluating potential risks to the EUS stage controller and avionics that could delay its delivery by another 14 months. NASA officials disagreed with the analysis.

Mismanaged and Inexperienced

The OIG interviewed officials at NASA headquarters, Marshall Space Flight Center, Michoud Assembly Facility, the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA), and Boeing. It also reviewed NASA and its contractors’ budgets, contract obligations, and quality control documents, among other materials.

In short, the office found that Boeing’s quality management system at Michoud does not adhere to NASA or international standards.

For example, Boeing Defense’s Earned Value Management System (EVMS)—which NASA uses to measure contract cost and schedule progress and is required on all projects with a lifecycle cost greater than $250M—has been disapproved by the Department of Defense since 2020. Officials claim this precludes Boeing from reliably predicting an EUS delivery date.

“Boeing’s process for addressing contractual noncompliance has been ineffective, and the company has generally been nonresponsive in taking corrective actions when the same quality control issues reoccur,” the OIG says.

The DCMA has issued several corrective action requests (CARs), handed down when quality control issues are identified, for the EVMS. Between September 2021 and September 2023, the agency issued Boeing a whopping 71 CARs after identifying quality control issues in the manufacturing of core and upper stages at Michoud. According to officials, that’s a massive number for a system that has been in development for so long.

“Boeing officials incorrectly approved hardware processing under unacceptable environmental conditions, accepted and presented damaged seals to NASA for inspection, and used outdated versions of work orders,” the report says. “DCMA also found that Boeing personnel made numerous administrative errors through changes to certified work order data without proper documentation.”

According to Safety and Mission Assurance officials at NASA and DCMA officials at Michoud, Boeing’s quality control issues stem from a workforce that is, by and large, unqualified.

During a visit to Michoud in 2023, for example, inspectors discovered that welding on a component of the SLS Core Stage 3 did not meet NASA standards. Per the report, unsatisfactory welding performed on a set of fuel tanks led directly to a seven-month delay in EUS completion.

“According to NASA officials, the welding issues arose due to Boeing’s inexperienced technicians and inadequate work order planning and supervision,” the OIG says. “The lack of a trained and qualified workforce increases the risk that Boeing will continue to manufacture parts and components that do not adhere to NASA requirements and industry standards.”

Complicating matters further is the relocation of SLS core stage production for Artemis III from Michoud to Kennedy, which will require Boeing to transition a decade of production processes developed at the former site to the latter.

The OIG said the manufacturer is developing a more robust, hands-on training program that could revamp its workforce but is long overdue.

“Some technicians reported they had to hunt through layers of documentation to identify required instructions and documentation of work history and key decisions related to the hardware,” the report says.

Further, maintaining that workforce may be difficult—the OIG predicts Boeing will spend an average of $26 million per month on EUS personnel through 2027. That was the norm for the company from February to August 2023.

Boeing management has also dropped the ball at higher levels. For instance, in the leadup to Artemis I, Boeing underestimated the complexity of building the SLS core stage, and EUS funding had to be redirected to that project.

“This ultimately led to a nearly one-year delay in EUS work and an additional $4 billion in funding to Boeing to cover the costs for the core stage development work,” according to the OIG.

In addition, NASA officials believe Boeing’s supply chain woes are of its own making, stemming from late negotiations and contract agreements.

Next Steps for NASA

The OIG report paints the picture of a company in disarray from top to bottom.

The office did not pin the blame entirely on Boeing. It criticized NASA, for example, for spending more than $3 billion over ten years without submitting an ABC to Congress and the Office of Budget and Management. The ABC is the only official cost and schedule baseline used to measure project performance against expectations.

The office’s four recommendations, however, center around the manufacturer.

First, the OIG calls on the associate administrator of NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate (ESDMD), alongside the agency’s assistant administrator for procurement and chief of safety and mission assurance, to collaborate with Boeing on a more robust, NASA-approved quality management system. It also recommends officials penalize the company financially for its previous violations.

The OIG further directs the ESDMD to conduct a cost overrun analysis of Boeing’s EUS contract to minimize the impact to Artemis missions. Finally, it asks the associate administrator to coordinate with the DCMA to ensure Boeing’s compliance with EVMS requirements.

NASA agreed with three of the four recommendations and proposed actions to take. Interestingly, though, it rejected the suggestion of fining Boeing.

“NASA interprets this recommendation to be directing NASA to institute penalties outside the bounds of the contract,” said Catherine Koerner, deputy associate administrator of the ESDMD, in NASA’s response to the report. “There are already authorities in the contract, such as award fee provisions, which enable financial ramifications for noncompliance with quality control standards.”

Essentially, the agency believes it can keep Boeing in check by rewarding good behavior rather than penalizing mismanagement. The OIG, predictably, disagrees, characterizing NASA as “unresponsive” to what it considers significant safety concerns.

“In the end, failure to address these issues may not only hinder the Block 1B’s readiness for Artemis IV but also have a cascading impact on the overall sustainability of the Artemis campaign and NASA’s deep space human exploration efforts,” the report says.

Boeing will look to improve some of its quality control issues under the leadership of new CEO Kelly Ortberg, the ex-boss of Rockwell Collins who took over after the ousting of former CEO Dave Calhoun.

Calhoun’s departure this month comes as the company continues to be grilled over the loss of a door plug on a Boeing 737 Max 9 in January as well as persistent issues with Starliner, its semireusable spacecraft under contract with NASA for astronaut rotation missions to the  International Space Station. Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams may end up spending eight months on the orbital laboratory, rather than eight days as intended.

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NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) have agreed to facilitate missions to the moon using a crewed lunar rover designed, built, and operated by Japan. The enclosed and pressurized rover is designed to serve as a mobile habitat and laboratory for human personnel.

In exchange, NASA will set aside space for two JAXA astronauts on future moon landing missions under its Artemis program. Artemis is essentially the successor to the Apollo program, with the aim of initiating a new generation of lunar exploration.

NASA expects the rover, which will give crews more time to work on the lunar surface, to land on the moon during the Artemis VII mission, which is tentatively scheduled for 2030 or 2031. The agency anticipates it will have a 10-year lifespan and be used on subsequent Artemis missions. Japan will design, develop, and operate the rover, while NASA will provide launch and delivery to the moon.

“America no longer will walk on the Moon alone,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “With this new rover, we will uncover groundbreaking discoveries on the lunar surface that will benefit humanity and inspire the Artemis generation.”

Nelson and Masahito Moriyama, Japan’s minister of education, culture, sports, science and technology, signed the agreement Tuesday at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C.

The following day, President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced “a shared goal for a Japanese national to be the first non-American astronaut to land on the moon on a future Artemis mission, assuming important benchmarks are achieved.”

A crewed, pressurized rover called the Lunar Cruiser has been under development by JAXA and Toyota since 2020. The vehicle uses hydrogen fuel cell technology found in the automaker’s electric vehicles. It could transport astronauts across the lunar surface for up to 30 days and cruise for up to 6,200 miles, providing ample time to perform research and conduct experiments. The partners are further developing systems to automate most of the driving and navigation.

The Lunar Cruiser’s tires are made from metal, and an onboard fuel cell uses solar energy and stored water to produce hydrogen and oxygen, generating electricity. The rover can also convert electricity stored in its battery pack back into hydrogen and oxygen.

According to NASA, two astronauts will use the vehicle to traverse the moon’s south pole during Artemis VII. Toyota expects it to be ready for launch by 2029.

“The pressurized rover will be a powerful contribution to the overall Artemis architecture as Japan and the U.S. go hand in hand with international and industry partners to the lunar surface and beyond,” said JAXA president Hiroshi Yamakawa.

The lunar rover arrangement falls under a framework agreement signed between the U.S. and Japan in 2023, which signifies the countries’ “mutual interest in peaceful exploration.”

The agreement covers a wide range of activities from science to exploration and will include Japanese participation in NASA’s Dragonfly mission, which will study Saturn’s largest moon, called Titan, using a dual-quadcopter lander. JAXA will also contribute to the development of NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. In return, NASA will help develop JAXA’s SOLAR-C sun-observing satellite.

The U.S. space agency will allocate crew space for a JAXA astronaut on a future Artemis mission to deploy Gateway, a lunar orbital space station. An agreement between the two calls for Japan to supply the space station’s environmental control and life support systems and cargo transportation.

Artemis I—an uncrewed lunar flight test of NASA’s Space Launch System and Orion capsule—splashed down in December 2022 after a 25-day, 1.4 million-mile jaunt around the moon and back. However, issues unearthed during the flight have delayed Artemis II, a crewed lunar flyby, and Artemis III, intended to be the first crewed lunar landing in half a century, to September 2025 and 2026, respectively.

Artemis III astronauts would become the first humans to visit the moon’s south pole, where they will collect lunar samples, images, and other data. NASA describes the mission as “one of the most complex undertakings of engineering and human ingenuity in the history of deep space exploration.”

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The 10 astronauts had been selected as candidates for the training program from a highly competitive pool of about 12,000 applicants in 2021, NASA said. Their training included more than two years of basic training that entailed robotics, space station systems, and spacewalking.

The graduation milestone now means they may be assigned to future missions on the International Space Station or commercial space stations, as well as NASA’s Artemis moon mission campaign.

• READ MORE: Do You Have What It Takes to Be a Martian?

NASA identified the graduating astronauts as Nichole Ayers of Colorado Springs, Colorado; Marcos Berríos of Guaynabo, Puerto Rico; Chris Birch of Gilbert, Arizona; Deniz Bunham of Wasilla, Alaska; Luke Delaney of DeBary, Florida; Andre Douglas of Chesapeake, Virginia; Jack Hathaway of South Windsor, Connecticut; Anil Menon of Minneapolis; Chris Williams of Potomac, Maryland; and Jessica Wittner of Clovis, California.

United Arab Emirates astronauts Nora Al Matrooshi and Mohammad Al Mulla of the Mohammad Bin Rashid Space Centre in Dabai also trained alongside the class as part of a long-standing international partnership.

• READ MORE: NASA Delays First Crewed U.S. Moon Landing in Half a Century to 2026

Help Wanted: Astronauts

NASA commenced its search for the next round of astronaut candidates Tuesday. Duties for the position include conducting research experiments, performing spacecraft maintenance, and serving as a public face for the space agency. Frequent travel also is required.

• READ MORE: ‘Odysseus’ Transmits First Lunar Landing Images

“Upon completing training, they will join the active astronaut corps and become eligible for spaceflight assignment,” NASA said in a statement. “Until assigned a spaceflight, they will have responsibilities within the astronaut office, ranging from supporting their fellow astronauts in space to advising on the development of new spacecraft.”

More information on the astronaut candidate program may be found here. The deadline for applying is April 2.

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Intuitive Machines’ IM-1 mission made history for completing the first successful moon landing by a company when its Nova-C autonomous lander Odysseus reached the South Pole region on February 22. 

On Wednesday afternoon, however, only hours of power fueling transmission to Earth remained.

• READ MORE: ‘Odysseus’ Lunar Lander Alive, Well… But Likely Not Upright

“We know we’re degrading in power,” Steve Altemus, CEO of Houston-based Intuitive Machines, said Wednesday during a press conference, adding that within five hours no more telemetry would be available.

When the power runs out, the lander will conduct a “quiet power down,” Altemus said, adding there may be an opportunity to attempt to repower it in about three weeks when the sun once again is in range of the lander’s solar panels.

• READ MORE: ‘Odysseus’ Transmits First Lunar Landing Images

Upon its descent, the Nova-C lander tilted over slowly and came to rest at an angle about 30 degrees above a 12-degree slope, Altemus said. Despite the less-than-upright landing, all of its payloads are transmitting data, according to the company.

• READ MORE: The ‘Odysseus’ Has Landed

“A soft touchdown on the moon is a great accomplishment,” said Joel Kearns, deputy associate administrator of exploration at NASA. 

As part of NASA’s commercial lunar payload services (CLPS) initiative and Artemis campaign, the IM-1 mission carried six NASA payloads conducting research to better understand the lunar environment. 

“This image retrieved from the lander on February 27 captures Odysseus’ landing strut during landing on February 22 performing its primary task, absorbing first contact with the lunar surface,” Intuitive Machines said in a mission update Wednesday. “Meanwhile, the lander’s liquid methane and liquid oxygen engine is still throttling, which provided stability. The company believes the two insights captured in this image enabled Odysseus to gently lean into the lunar surface, preserving the ability to return scientific data.”

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“This is the first time an American commercial lunar lander has made it to orbit around the moon,” NASA said on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The uncrewed robotic lunar lander touched down on the moon’s surface at 6:23 p.m. EST. 

• READ MORE: ‘Odysseus’ Transmits New Photos Ahead of Lunar Landing Attempt

The mission, known as IM-1, launched on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket February 15 at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, as part of NASA’s commercial lunar payload services (CLPS) initiative and Artemis campaign. On board are six NASA payloads that will conduct research and collect data to better understand the lunar environment to prepare for human exploration under Artemis. 

Your order was delivered… to the Moon! @Int_Machines' uncrewed lunar lander landed at 6:23pm ET (2323 UTC), bringing NASA science to the Moon's surface. These instruments will prepare us for future human exploration of the Moon under #Artemis. pic.twitter.com/sS0poiWxrU

— NASA (@NASA) February 22, 2024

“On the eighth day of a quarter-million mile voyage—a voyage along the great cosmic bridge from the launch pad of the Kennedy Space Center, to the target of the South Pole of the moon, a commercial lander named Odysseus powered by a company called Intuitive Machines [of Houston] launched upon a SpaceX rocket, carrying a bounty of NASA scientific instruments and bearing the dream of a new adventure,”  NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a video message immediately following the landing.

• READ MORE: IM-1 Private Lunar Lander Mission Transmits First Space Images

“Today for the first time in a half century, the U.S. has returned to the moon,” Nelson said. “Today for the first time in the history of humanity, a commercial company—an American company—launched and led the voyage up there. And today is a day that shows the power and promise of NASA’s commercial partnerships.”

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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Intuitive Machines released two new photos transmitted by its voyaging Nova-C robotic lunar lander Odysseus, which will attempt to reach the moon’s South Pole surface Thursday.

The mission, known as IM-1, is set to be the first U.S. moon landing in more than 50 years. Launched on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket February 15 at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, it is part of NASA’s commercial lunar payload services (CLPS) initiative and Artemis campaign. On board are six NASA payloads that will conduct research and collect data to better understand the lunar environment. 

• READ MORE: IM-1 Private Lunar Lander Mission Transmits First Space Images

Thursday afternoon, the Houston-based private aerospace company updated its projection for Odysseus’ expected landing time. 

“Flight controllers chose to exercise an additional orbit before starting the IM-1 mission landing sequence. The new anticipated landing time is 1724 CST [6:24 p.m. EST],” Intuitive Machines said in a mission update.

• READ MORE: Here’s When ‘Odysseus’ is Expected to Land on the Moon

Earlier projections had Odysseus landing around 5:30 p.m. EST, however, such forecasts are approximate and subject to change, Intuitive Machines said.

• READ MORE: How to Watch ‘Odysseus’ Attempt First U.S. Moon Landing Since 1972

“The landing opportunity will be Odysseus’ hardest challenge yet,” the company said. “The lander continues to be in excellent health, orbiting approximately 92 kilometers [57 miles] above the lunar surface.”

Thursday’s anticipated lunar landing will be livestreamed here.

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In a matter of hours, Intuitive Machines’ private lunar lander Odysseus will attempt the first U.S. moon landing in more than half a century.

On Wednesday, the voyaging Nova-C robotic moon lander had successfully traversed what the company called the mission’s “largest challenge to date,” reaching lunar orbit as planned ahead of its landing anticipated at around 4:24 p.m. EST Thursday.

“After traveling over [1 million kilometers], Odysseus is now closer to the moon than the end-to-end distance driving across ‘Space City,’ Houston, Texas,” Intuitive Machines said Wednesday, alluding to the site of its company headquarters.

The update followed a scheduled engine burn of nearly seven minutes that inserted Odysseus into circular orbit about 57 miles above the moon’s surface.

“Odysseus continues to be in excellent health,” the company said. 

• READ MORE: Here’s When ‘Odysseus’ Is Expected to Land on the Moon

When Odysseus touches down on the moon’s surface near Malapert A in the South Pole region of the moon Thursday, it will be the first U.S. lunar landing since NASA’s Apollo 17 crew in 1972.

The private IM-1 mission, which launched on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket February 15 at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, is headed to the South Pole region as part of NASA’s commercial lunar payload services (CLPS) initiative and Artemis campaign. On board are six NASA payloads that will conduct research and collect data to better understand the lunar environment. 

• READ MORE: Do You Have What It Takes to Be a Martian?

“Through the Artemis campaign, commercial robotic deliveries will perform science experiments, test technologies, and demonstrate capabilities to help NASA explore the moon in advance of Artemis Generation astronaut missions to the lunar surface, and ultimately crewed missions to Mars,” NASA said.

How to Watch

There will be ample opportunity to tune in to the lunar landing Thursday. Intuitive Machines will livestream the event here.

NASA will also provide live landing coverage on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agency’s website. 

The space agency said its coverage will begin at 4:15 p.m. EST, as the landing milestones occur. 

“Upon successful landing, Intuitive Machines and NASA will host a news conference to discuss the mission and science opportunities that lie ahead as the company begins lunar surface operations,” NASA said.

WATCH: IM-1 Mission Flightpath Overview

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Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C robotic lunar lander Odysseus is on track to execute the first U.S. moon landing in more than 50 years on Thursday, according to the company.

The private IM-1 mission, which launched on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket February 15 at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, is headed to the South Pole region of the moon as part of the agency’s commercial lunar payload services (CLPS) initiative and Artemis campaign. 

The mission comes a little more than a month after the failed attempt of Astrobotic’s Peregrine Mission One to become the first American CLPS spacecraft to reach the moon’s surface.

• READ MORE: Moon-Bound Nova-C Commercial Lunar Lander Successfully Launches

On Thursday afternoon, Odysseus will take that title, according to Intuitive Machines. 

The private aerospace company updated its projection for landing in a mission update Thursday. “Flight controllers chose to exercise an additional orbit before starting the IM-1 mission landing sequence. The new anticipated landing time is 1724 CST” or 6:24 p.m. EST, it said.

On Saturday, Intuitive Machines released the first images from the IM-1 mission, showing Oydysseus’ journey toward the moon with the Earth in the background.

According to the company, flight controllers commanded the first planned trajectory correction maneuver on Sunday, igniting the lander’s engine for the second time. On Monday morning, controllers also completed all NASA and commercial transit payload operations, it said.

• READ MORE: IM-1 Private Lunar Lander Mission Transmits First Space Images

On board Odysseus are six NASA payloads that will conduct research and collect data to better understand the lunar environment, beginning before the lander touches down on the moon’s surface. According to the space agency, instruments will measure the quantity of cryogenic engine fuel as it is used en route, and precision landing technologies will be tested during Odysseus’ descent. When the lander reaches the moon’s surface, it will then focus on space weather, lunar surface interactions, and radio astronomy, NASA said.

On Wednesday, however, Odysseus faces what Intuitive Machines calls its “largest challenge to date”—lunar orbit insertion.

“Odysseus continues to be in excellent health, and flight controllers are analyzing and managing the lander’s thermal conditioning for critical systems and payloads with a combination of heater power and attitude control to maximize efficiency,” the company said.

The lunar landing anticipated Thursday will be livestreamed here.

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Following a launch delay earlier in the week due to a technical issue, the robotic Nova-C class lunar lander lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 1:05 a.m. EST.

Shortly before 2 a.m., the lander deployed from the Falcon 9 rocket second stage, NASA said.

“Teams confirmed it made communications contact with the company’s mission operations center in Houston,” the agency said. “The spacecraft is stable and receiving solar power.” 

• READ MORE: SpaceX Pushes Launch of Odysseus Moon Lander to Thursday

The IM-1 mission is headed to the South Pole region of the moon as part of NASA’s commercial lunar payload services (CLPS) initiative and Artemis campaign. On board the Nova-C lunar lander, called Odysseus, are six NASA payloads that will conduct research to better understand the lunar environment. 

NASA experiments and data collection will begin before the lander touches down on the moon’s surface, according to the space agency. While en route, instruments will measure the quantity of cryogenic engine fuel as it is used, and precision landing technologies will be tested during its descent, according to the agency. When the lander reaches the moon’s surface, it will then focus on space weather, lunar surface interactions, and radio astronomy. 

“The Nova-C lander also will carry retroreflectors contributing to a network of location markers on the moon for communication and navigation for future autonomous navigation technologies,” NASA said.

Following the launch Thursday, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson called the mission a “giant leap for humanity” amid preparations for Artemis, a series of missions that will attempt to return U.S. astronauts to the moon as soon as 2025. 

• READ MORE: First U.S. Moonshot in Decades Will Fall Short—What It Means

“These daring moon deliveries will not only conduct new science [on] the moon, but they are supporting a growing commercial space economy while showing the strength of American technology and innovation,” Nelson said. “We have so much to learn through CLPS flights that will help us shape the future of human exploration for the Artemis generation.” 

The IM-1 mission is the first attempted lunar landing as part of the CLPS initiative and comes little more than a month after the failed attempt of Astrobotic’s Peregrine Mission One to become the first American CLPS spacecraft to reach the moon’s surface.

“We are keenly aware of the immense challenges that lie ahead,” Steve Altemus, Intuitive Machines CEO, said in a statement. “However, it is precisely in facing these challenges head-on that we recognize the magnitude of the opportunity before us—to softly return the United States to the surface of the moon for the first time in 52 years.”

The Nova-C lander is expected to land on the moon February 22. 

The post Moon-Bound Nova-C Commercial Lunar Lander Successfully Launches appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

During a press conference Tuesday afternoon, NASA officials announced that the Artemis II and Artemis III moon missions—planned for this year and next, respectively—will be pushed to September 2025 and September 2026. Artemis II is expected to put NASA astronauts in lunar orbit, while Artemis III aims to land them on the moon, where they would become the first humans to visit the lunar south pole.

The Artemis program is effectively the descendant of the Apollo missions, which concluded decades earlier. But unlike Apollo, it represents a shift toward leveraging private sector companies, such as SpaceX and Blue Origin, for key vehicle components.

Despite speculation that the Artemis lunar landing could be pushed to Artemis IV—which NASA affirmed is still on track for 2028—the space agency said no changes will be made to the flight plan of either mission, and no flights will be added. However, for a variety of reasons, many related to safety, both Artemis II and III will fly later than initially planned.

As Jim Free, associate administrator of NASA, put it: “We’ll launch when we’re ready.”

Safety First

Attending Tuesday’s press conference were Free, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, Deputy Associate Administrator of the Moon to Mars program Amit Kshatriya, and Associate Administrator of the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate Catherine Koerner. The four officials—plus representatives from NASA industry partners such as SpaceX and Lockheed Martin—fielded questions from media about why the missions were delayed.

According to NASA, several issues discovered during Artemis I, which carried the agency’s reusable Orion capsule around the moon in 2022, are causing delays to Artemis II. These center around the spacecraft’s heat shield, abort capabilities, and electrical systems and could pose threats its occupants.

Kshatriya said heat shield erosion during Artemis I caused pieces of the thermal cover to fly off—an outcome not predicted by NASA. The agency said it discovered the issue while rewatching the watershed flight and has spent “the bulk of 2023” working to understand its root cause.

Orion is also dealing with a design flaw in the motor valve circuitry for its life support system, which was tested and approved for Artemis II but not the subsequent mission. The spacecraft’s digital motor controllers are hampering its carbon dioxide scrubber, which absorbs the gas to provide breathable air for astronauts. Artemis I did not test any life support systems, but they will be added to Artemis II along with a new abort system.

Further, NASA found a deficiency in Orion’s batteries. The issue won’t hinder the spacecraft’s ability to separate from the booster in an emergency, but the agency said it could cause unexpected effects.

“We’re still very early in that investigation,” said Kshatriya.

The effort to replace and retest the faulty components will be tremendous, NASA said, but essential for Orion to fly on Artemis II and beyond. Nelson said the revised mission timeline will “give Artemis teams more time to work through the challenges.”

Even more work will need to be done for Artemis III, which NASA said will introduce several new components and systems: a human landing system (HLS), docking module, propellant transfer system, and spacesuits to name a few. Kshatriya said the timeline for that mission remains “very aggressive.”

Free said NASA expects the development of SpaceX’s Starship HLS and Axiom’s next-generation spacesuits will take additional time. The agency has also yet to solve the issue of propellant transfer, or in-flight refilling, which involves a spacecraft drawing fuel from another spacecraft or stationary outpost.

A SpaceX representative attending the media briefing estimated the company will need to complete ten refueling missions before Starship HLS lands on the moon, which the company hopes will happen in 2025. 

The representative added that SpaceX’s Starship—the largest and most powerful rocket ever built—is working toward a NASA tipping point demo to explore propellant transfer between tanks. The company does not consider this a propellant test mission, but the maneuver will be studied during Starship’s third orbital test flight, expected in February.

When asked, the representative did not provide a minimum number of Starship orbital test flights needed before a lunar landing. But the propellant transfer flight, whenever that happens, will be the one that matters most.

“We’ve been building the machine to build the machine,” the representative said.

Free added that development of NASA’s Gateway space station—which is expected to fly on a future Artemis mission—and the Block 1B variant of its Space Launch System (SLS) also necessitated delays. 

But NASA officials said the larger gaps between the missions will allow the agency to incorporate more lessons from previous flights into each increasingly complex Artemis project. SpaceX and Blue Origin, for example, will be required to develop cargo variants of their human lunar landers as part of their obligations for Artemis IV, NASA said Tuesday.

A Clearer Outlook?

When one questioner mentioned the space industry’s doubts about the new timeline—arising from previous Artemis delays—Free explained what makes NASA so confident.

He said the agency now has a better understanding of Orion and other Artemis vehicles. The bigger reassurance, however, is the industry’s support: Free said 11 industry and contractor partners attended Tuesday’s press conference, and all of them contributed to the revised mission schedule.

Kshatriya pointed to the SLS core stage delivery to NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility as a sign of readiness, adding that the spacecraft’s booster segments are ready to stack and the upper stage is “ready to go.” Further, NASA’s European Space Agency (ESA) partners will ship a service model to the agency in a few months, he said.

Nelson, meanwhile, dispelled fears that China could beat the U.S. to a moon landing. He expressed confidence that the rival superpower would not reach the lunar surface before Artemis III. But with the delay, the two competitors’ schedules are undoubtedly more aligned.

Nelson also pointed to the agency’s recent progress, most notably a partnership with the United Arab Emirates to build the airlock for Gateway and the launch of Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) missions.

The NASA administrator emphasized that Artemis will only be the beginning of the new era of American spaceflight. The agency is also developing its Moon to Mars program, which Nelson said will rely on international partners to land an American on Mars. Reaching the moon, he said, will be the first step toward missions to the red planet in the future.

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