NASA's SLS Program Faces Multiple Challenges and Delays
On August 14, it was reported that a strongly worded report recently released by the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) pointed out that there are multiple key problems in the process of developing NASA's new Space Launch System (SLS) super heavy-lift rocket, and these problems may lead to the delay of the Artemis lunar exploration mission.
The report was released by NASA's internal oversight agency on August 8, focusing on the huge Space Launch System SLS Block 1B and its Exploration Upper Stage (EUS). The Block 1B is designed to enhance the cargo capacity of the SLS flying to the moon. This upgraded version is crucial to NASA's long-term lunar exploration plan and is expected to be used in the Artemis 4 mission planned to be launched in 2028.
The Office of the Inspector General of NASA pointed out that the work of Boeing in the Michoud assembly facility in New Orleans for the SLS core stage, upper stage and rocket flight avionics system did not meet international standards or the agency's requirements. This situation led to the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) issuing a number of Corrective Action Requests (CAR) to Boeing. The levels of CAR vary, indicating that the work fails to meet specific contract requirements.
The report pointed out that the quality control failure in Michoud is mainly due to the lack of sufficiently trained and experienced aerospace staff at Boeing. The report criticized Boeing's insufficiency in training and supervision and failure to address these deficiencies, thus raising serious doubts about the safety and reliability of SLS components.
The report also pointed out that the cost estimate is continuously rising, and hinted that due to these problems, the Artemis 4 may not be launched in the expected September 2028.
The report said: We estimate that the cost of SLS Block 1B will reach about 5.7 billion US dollars before the launch in 2028, which is 700 million US dollars higher than the nearly 5 billion US dollars baseline set by NASA in 2023.
Among them, the development of EUS accounts for more than half of the cost, and we expect its cost to increase from 962 million US dollars in 2017 to nearly 2.8 billion US dollars in 2028.
The report also pointed out that Boeing's delivery of EUS to NASA has been delayed from February 2021 to April 2027. These problems, combined with other factors, indicate that there may be further delays, thus affecting the Artemis 4 mission.
The report also found that Boeing's response measures to these problems are ineffective, especially in the recurring quality control problems.
The inspector general's suggestions include developing a quality management training plan that meets the standards for Boeing and imposing financial penalties on Boeing's behavior that does not meet the quality standards. It is also recommended to conduct a detailed analysis of the cost overruns in Boeing's EUS development contract. NASA agreed to three of these suggestions, but did not agree to impose financial penalties on Boeing's behavior that does not meet the quality control standards.
This report is another blow to Boeing. Its Starliner spacecraft has been under review due to an unplanned extended stay at the International Space Station. Previously, there was a problem with the reaction control thruster of the spacecraft, and relevant tests are still ongoing.
This also adds new problems to NASA's Artemis plan. The Artemis 2 and Artemis 3 missions - the latter of which is planned to be the first mission for humans to return to the lunar surface - have been postponed to September 2025 and September 2026, respectively.
At the same time, the Orion spacecraft of Artemis made by Lockheed Martin is also facing problems. In May this year, the Office of the Inspector General of NASA released a report on the heat shield problem of the Orion spacecraft, which may further affect the preparations for the Artemis 2 mission.