What’s the holdup?
NASA’s Space Launch System before the Artemis 1 mission (Credit: NASA)
SLS - or Space Launch System, is meant to be a revolutionary super heavy launch system. However, 10+ billion dollars later, there’s been only one launch, numerous delays and countless budget overruns. So, what’s the holdup?
With development beginning in 2011, the debut launch was slated for late 2016. However, several issues, but mainly budget overruns, would eventually push the launch to November 2022.
On the 16th of November 2022, SLS made its debut. Uncrewed, the rocket blasted off from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39B. Carrying the Orion spacecraft and 10 cubesats as secondary payloads, they were placed into a trans-lunar injection orbit.
NASA’s Space Launch System produces 8,800,000 pounds of thrust on takeoff (Credit: NASA)
On the 25th day of Orion’s mission, it would re-enter Earth’s atmosphere before splashing down in the Pacific Ocean and being recovered by the US Navy’s amphibious transport dock USS Portland.
NASA’s Orion spacecraft gets recovered (Credit: NASA)
However, Artemis 2, which was originally intended to launch as early as 2019, has since been delayed to September 2025. NASA’s Europa Clipper, originally intended to launch aboard SLS, would instead be launched on SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy for $178 million.
The delays of SLS have been for many reasons, but one of the most prominent is the sheer unaffordability of the rocket. In September of 2023, America’s Government Accountability Office published a report examining the billions of dollars NASA have spent on SLS.
A direct quote from the report (page 2), “Senior NASA officials told GAO that at current cost levels, the SLS program is unaffordable.”, confirmed what everyone already knew about the program - it was far too expensive.
Furthermore, Mobile Launcher 2, which is needed to move future versions of the rocket to the launch pad, was originally projected to cost $383 million and be delivered by March 2023, has since far surpassed these projections. Mobile Launcher 2’s cost has since risen to $1.8 billion, with a final cost possibly growing to $2.7 billion, and delivery in September 2027.
COVID-19 also delayed the rocket, as NASA’s workforce was significantly slowed down as they were faced by numerous precautions to avoid the spread of the virus.
Orion, the spacecraft for Space Launch System’s crewed launches, has also faced numerous setbacks, further delaying the Artemis missions. During Orion’s atmospheric re-entry on Artemis 1, the capsule unexpectedly lost material from the heat shield. This, coupled with other issues, such as faulty life support systems, have further contributed to delays of SLS and the Artemis program.
To conclude, NASA’s SLS is a great rocket that has been plagued with issues from the start. I really hope we will see a day when the issues of SLS are ironed out.
