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79-694: The current NASA Acting Inspector General is George A. Scott. The NASA Office of Inspector General was created in response to Inspector General Act of 1978 , which defined Offices of Inspector General (OIGs) to provide independent audit and investigative units at 63 federal agencies, including NASA. NASA OIG's Computer Crimes Division (CCD) conducted investigations jointly with U.S. and foreign counterparts into NASA computer networks, some of which resulted in arrests, indictments and convictions of hackers located in Venezuela, Italy, Turkey, England, Portugal, Nigeria, and Romania. NASA OIG special agent badges have

158-660: A cause for the audit to be performed, is the cost of the Commercial Crew Program (CCP) and the allocation of funds to the two companies participating, SpaceX and The Boeing Company. Since 2010, NASA has transported astronauts to the ISS via the Russian Soyuz vehicle, and has been in the process of contracting crew transportation. From 2010-2019, this effort has obligated $ 5.5 billion dollars out of an allotted $ 8.5 billion total. The OIG performed an investigation on

237-517: A common core stage design but differ in their upper stages and boosters. Together with the solid rocket boosters, the core stage is responsible for propelling the upper stage and payload out of the atmosphere to near orbital velocity. It contains the liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen tanks for the ascent phase, the forward and aft solid rocket booster attach points, avionics, and the Main Propulsion System (MPS), an assembly of

316-509: A crewed flight to 2020 and 2022, respectively. As of this audit, Boeing had expended $ 5.3 billion of the $ 6.2 billion allocated for the Boeing stages contract, with Boeing having been expected to reach the contracts full value by 2019 without providing a finished core stage or the EUS. The Office of Audits reviewed Boeing’s meeting of the goals of cost, performance, and scheduling for the development of

395-406: A flight, the rocket would have continued to fly normally. There was no sign of damage to the core stage or the engines, contrary to initial concerns. The second fire test was completed on 18 March 2021, with all four engines igniting, throttling down as expected to simulate in-flight conditions, and gimballing profiles. The core stage was shipped to Kennedy Space Center to be mated with the rest of

474-454: A journalist, a NASA spokesperson did not deny this per-flight cost estimate. The NASA Office of Inspector General has conducted several audits of the SLS program. A November 2021 report estimated that, at least for the first four launches of Artemis program, the per-launch production and operating costs would be $ 2.2 billion for SLS, plus $ 568 million for Exploration Ground Systems . Additionally,

553-580: A lack of sufficient oversight by principal investigators and NASA officials. The OA suggested that in order to resolve this issue, the NASA Chief Information Officer and Chief of GISS ensure a thorough and proper review of any and all research seeking to be published, so as to prevent the release of sensitive information. In regards to the misuse of funds by GISS, the OA suggested that GISS managers be provided additional training, and that

632-503: A modified solid rocket booster with lighter casing, more energetic propellant, and four segments instead of five, and Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne and Dynetics proposed a liquid-fueled booster named Pyrios . However, this competition was planned for a development plan in which Block 1A would be followed by Block 2A, with upgraded boosters. NASA canceled Block 1A and the planned competition in April 2014, in favor of simply remaining with

711-459: A parachute recovery system, as they will not be recovered after launch. The propellants for the solid rocket boosters are aluminum powder, which is very reactive, and ammonium perchlorate, a powerful oxidizer. They are held together by a binder, polybutadiene acrylonitrile (PBAN). The mixture has the consistency of a rubber eraser and is packed into each segment. The five-segment solid rocket boosters provide approximately 25% more total impulse than

790-421: A platform to lead into studies and missions within deep space. The President's 2019 fiscal year budget request called for an end to direct federal funding of the ISS by 2025, although this was met with bipartisan congressional resistance. NASA has since proposed transitioning use of the ISS to commercial purposes, alongside continued research operations. This was met with suggestion that NASA should continue use of

869-460: A projected development cost of US$ 18 billion through 2017, with $ 10 billion for the SLS rocket, $ 6 billion for the Orion spacecraft , and $ 2 billion for upgrades to the launch pad and other facilities at Kennedy Space Center . These costs and schedules were considered optimistic in an independent 2011 cost assessment report by Booz Allen Hamilton for NASA. An internal 2011 NASA document estimated

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948-417: A senior administrator should be hired to oversee the management of the institution’s grants. The ISS has served as an orbiting platform and laboratory for studies about working and living in space and the effects, benefits, and consequences of such. Built as part of an international collaboration, the ISS has been home to biological and technological research, continued international partnership in space, and

1027-624: A test flight in fall 2022, and NASA and Boeing are constructing the next three rockets for Artemis II , Artemis III , and Artemis IV . Boeing stated in July 2021 that while the COVID-19 pandemic had affected their suppliers and schedules, such as delaying parts needed for hydraulics, they would still be able to provide the Artemis II SLS core stage per NASA's schedule, with months to spare. The spray-on foam insulation process for Artemis II

1106-543: A total of $ 70 million, and the Ares I Crew Launch Vehicle, funded from 2006 to 2010 for a total of $ 4.8 billion in development, including the 5-segment Solid Rocket Boosters used on the SLS. The SLS was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in the NASA Authorization Act of 2010 , Public Law 111–267, in which NASA was directed to create a system for launching payloads and crew into space that would replace

1185-697: A variant with five main engines, a Block 1A variant with upgraded boosters instead of the improved second stage, and a Block 2 with five main engines plus the Earth Departure Stage , with up to three J-2X engines. In the initial announcement of the design of the SLS, NASA also announced an "Advanced Booster Competition", to select which boosters would be used on Block 2 of the SLS. Several companies proposed boosters for this competition, all of which were indicated as viable: Aerojet and Teledyne Brown proposed three booster engines each with dual combustion chambers, Alliant Techsystems proposed

1264-511: Is a temporary upper stage for Block 1 versions of SLS, built by United Launch Alliance , a joint venture of Boeing and Lockheed Martin . The ICPS is essentially an "off-the-shelf" Delta Cryogenic Second Stage , with minimal modifications for SLS integration. The ICPS is intended as a temporary solution and slated to be replaced on the Block 1B version of the SLS by the next-generation Exploration Upper Stage, under design by Boeing. The ICPS used on

1343-786: Is also responsible for research on atmospheres, origins and evolutions of planets and moons, Sun- Earth relations, among several other topics. In April 2018, the NASA OA performed an audit regarding GISS and its ability to meet NASA goals and standards, as well as appropriately use funds and coordinate its research with NASA teams. Findings from this audit conclude that GISS is a major supporter for NASA research and contributes greatly to numerous NASA projects, but has shown that there are some faults in place. 65 percent of GISS scientific research published from 2015-2017 were not approved for release to public, and GISS has practiced “unallowable use of NASA appropriated funds.” NASA OA deemed this to be caused by

1422-607: Is developing a new composite-based fuel tank for the EUS that would increase Block 1B's overall payload mass capacity to TLI by 40 percent. The improved upper stage was originally named the Dual Use Upper Stage (DUUS, pronounced "duce"), but was later renamed the Exploration Upper Stage (EUS). During the joint Senate-NASA presentation in September 2011, it was stated that the SLS program had

1501-587: Is divided into four offices: The Office of Audits (OA) at the NASA OIG is responsible for conducting audits and reviews of NASA programs, identifying any waste or mismanagement within those programs. Listed below are some notable audits performed by the Office of Audits. The Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) is responsible for researching the structure of Earth, the Moon, and other planetary bodies. The GISS

1580-540: Is its builder. The first one cost $ 60 million, and the next two cost $ 85 million together. The Exploration Upper Stage (EUS) is planned to first fly on Artemis IV . The EUS will complete the SLS ascent phase and then re-ignite to send its payload to destinations beyond LEO. It is expected to be used by Block 1B and Block 2. The EUS shares the core stage diameter of 8.4 meters, and will be powered by four RL10 C-3 engines. It will eventually be upgraded to use four improved RL10 C-X engines. As of March 2022 , Boeing

1659-477: Is made mostly of 2219 aluminum alloy , and contains numerous improvements to manufacturing processes, including friction stir welding for the barrel sections, and integrated milling for the stringers . The first four flights will each use and expend four of the remaining sixteen RS-25D engines previously flown on Space Shuttle missions. Aerojet Rocketdyne refits these engines with modernized engine controllers, higher throttle limits, as well as insulation for

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1738-492: The Ares I 's five-segment solid rocket boosters, themselves modified from the Space Shuttle 's solid rocket boosters, until at least the late 2020s. The overly powerful advanced booster would have resulted in unsuitably high acceleration, and would need modifications to Launch Complex 39B , its flame trench, and Mobile Launcher . On 31 July 2013, the SLS passed Preliminary Design Review. The review included not only

1817-590: The Constellation Program , including tests at low and high core temperatures, to validate performance at extreme temperatures. The 5-segment solid rocket booster would be carried over to SLS. Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems has completed full-duration static fire tests of the five-segment solid rocket boosters. Qualification Motor 1 was tested on 10 March 2015. Qualification Motor 2 was successfully tested on 28 June 2016. NASA has been reluctant to provide an official per-flight cost estimate for

1896-666: The Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The first three SLS flights are expected to use the Block 1 configuration, comprising a core stage , extended Space Shuttle boosters developed for Ares I and the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage (ICPS) upper stage. The improved Block 1B configuration, with the powerful and purpose-built Exploration Upper Stage (EUS), is planned to be introduced on

1975-558: The Orion spacecraft on the SLS, the Artemis II mission , no earlier than September 2025. Included in the above SLS costs above are (1) the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage (ICPS) , a $ 412 million contract and (2) the costs of developing the Exploration Upper Stage (below). Excluded from the SLS cost above are the costs to assemble, integrate, prepare and launch the SLS and its payloads, funded separately in

2054-490: The $ 11.9 billion spent on the SLS as of August 2018. By 2021, development of the core stage was expected to have cost $ 8.9 billion, twice the initially planned amount. In December 2018, NASA estimated that yearly budgets for the SLS will range from $ 2.1 to $ 2.3 billion between 2019 and 2023. In March 2019, the Trump administration released its fiscal year 2020 budget request for NASA, which notably proposed dropped funding for

2133-463: The Appendix of Title 5 of the U.S. Code to Title 5 itself as part of a positive law codification project . Space Launch System The Space Launch System ( SLS ) is an American super heavy-lift expendable launch vehicle used by NASA . Development of SLS began in 2011 as a replacement for the retiring Space Shuttle as well as the canceled Ares I and Ares V launch vehicles. SLS

2212-687: The Artemis I mission was powered by a single RL10B-2 engine, while the ICPS for Artemis II and Artemis III will use the RL10 C-2 variant. Block 1 is intended to be capable of lifting 209,000 lb (95 t) to low Earth orbit (LEO) in this configuration, including the weight of the ICPS as part of the payload. At the time of SLS core stage separation, Artemis I was travelling on an initial 1,806 by 30 km (1,122 by 19 mi) transatmospheric orbital trajectory. This trajectory ensured safe disposal of

2291-550: The Block 1B and Block 2 variants of SLS. Congressional action ultimately included the funding in the passed budget. One Gateway component that had been previously planned for the SLS Block 1B is expected to fly on the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket. On 1 May 2020, NASA awarded a contract extension to Aerojet Rocketdyne to manufacture 18 additional RS-25 engines with associated services for $ 1.79 billion, bringing

2370-566: The EUS with upgraded boosters. The ICPS for Artemis 1 was delivered by ULA to NASA about July 2017 and was housed at Kennedy Space Center as of November 2018. In mid-November 2014, construction of the first core stage hardware began using a new friction stir welding system in the South Vertical Assembly Building at NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility . Between 2015 and 2017, NASA test fired RS-25 engines in preparation for use on SLS. The core stage for

2449-592: The European Vinci instead of the RL10 , which offered the same specific impulse but with 64% greater thrust, which would allow for the same performance at a lower cost. In 2018, Blue Origin submitted a proposal to replace the EUS with a cheaper alternative to be designed and fabricated by the company, but it was rejected by NASA in November 2019 on multiple grounds; these included lower performance compared to

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2528-406: The ISS until 2028 or further, while also starting to make plans regarding the proper and safe decommission and destruction of the space station upon retirement. This audit by the NASA OA focuses on NASA’s effectiveness in maximizing the use of the ISS for human spaceflight studies and activities, as well as assesses challenges face by commercial utilization of the ISS. One complication found was that

2607-487: The NASA Exploration Ground Systems , currently at about $ 600 million per year, and anticipated to stay there through at least the first four launches of SLS. Also excluded are payloads that launch on the SLS, such as the Orion crew capsule, the predecessor programs that contributed to the development of the SLS, such as the Ares V Cargo Launch Vehicle project, funded from 2008 to 2010 for

2686-731: The NASA OA performed an investigation into NASA's management of the Space Launch System (SLS) Stages Contract. The SLS is contracted to The Boeing Company , and is the largest development of capabilities of spaceflight since the Space Shuttle Program , started over 40 years ago. This audit was performed to assess the timing of progress by Boeing on the construction of the SLS core stages, infrastructure, and Exploration Upper Stage (EUS). The OA found Boeing to be behind schedule, having slated an original launch readiness date of late 2017 for an uncrewed flight and 2021 for

2765-510: The NASA OIG provided suggestions to increase efficiency and effectiveness of the CCP. The contracts with Boeing and SpaceX were valued at $ 4.3 billion and $ 2.5 billion, respectively, each being contracted for six round-trip flights. NASA OIG compared these costs and differences in contract awards, as well as analyzing the cost per seat of the Soyuz, Boeing Starliner, and SpaceX Crew Dragon, finding that

2844-479: The NASA Office of Inspector General has called NASA's cost savings goals highly unrealistic and other potential government customers have made it clear they have no interest in using SLS. As of 2020 , three SLS versions are planned: Block 1, Block 1B, and Block 2. Each will use the same Core stage with its four main engines, but Block 1B will feature the Exploration Upper Stage (EUS), and Block 2 will combine

2923-600: The President, without regard to political affiliation and solely on the basis of integrity and demonstrated ability in accounting, auditing, financial analysis, law, management analysis, public administration, or investigations. Each Inspector General shall report to and be under the general supervision of the head of the establishment involved or, to the extent such authority is delegated, the officer next in rank below such head, but shall not report to, or be subject to supervision by, any other officer of such establishment. Neither

3002-416: The SLS core stage. SLS budget was also brought under review to aid in completing the audit and review. The OA determined that Boeing would exceed costs of $ 8 billion in development of the SLS core stage and EUS through 2021 with a 2 ½ years slippage in schedule. The summer of 2018 saw an overage of $ 600 million by Boeing for construction of core stages 1 and 2. The OA estimated that NASA would have to increase

3081-477: The SLS program passed its Key Decision Point C review and was deemed ready to enter full development, costs from February 2014 until its planned launch in September 2018 were estimated at $ 7.021 billion. Ground systems modifications and construction would require an additional $ 1.8 billion over the same time. In October 2018, NASA's Inspector General reported that the Boeing core stage contract had made up 40% of

3160-467: The SLS program was stated to have a 70% confidence level for the first Orion flight that carries crew , the second SLS flight overall, to happen by 2023; as of November 2021 , NASA delayed Artemis II from 2023 to May 2024. In March 2023, NASA announced they had delayed Artemis II to November 2024 and in January 2024 the mission was further delayed to September 2025. Efforts have been made to expand

3239-671: The SLS. However, independent agencies, such as the White House Office of Management and Budget and the NASA Office of Inspector General , have offered their own estimates. A White House Office of Management and Budget letter to the Senate Appropriations Committee in October 2019 estimated that SLS's total cost to the taxpayer was estimated at "over $ 2 billion" per launch. When questioned by

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3318-651: The Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters. The stock of SLS Block 1 to 1B boosters is limited by the number of casings left over from the Shuttle program, which allows for eight flights of the SLS. On 2 March 2019, the Booster Obsolescence and Life Extension program was announced, with the goal of developing new solid rocket boosters for SLS Block 2. These boosters will be built by Northrop Grumman Space Systems , and will be derived from

3397-445: The U.S. federal government. The Act specifically creates Inspector General positions and offices in more than a dozen specific departments and agencies. The Act gave these inspectors general the authority to review the internal documents of their departments or offices. They were given responsibility to investigate fraud, to give policy advice (5 U.S.C. § 404; IG Act, sec. 4), to handle certain complaints by employees, and to report to

3476-935: The blue NASA logo at their center. Each agent carries credentials which set out the agent's law enforcement authority and contain a one inch by one inch head and shoulders picture of the agent. NASA OIG special agents are armed, have arrest authority and can execute search warrants. They receive their law enforcement training at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Glynco, Georgia. Their hands-on training at Glynco includes hand-to-hand combat, arrest techniques, small arms and shotgun training, high speed pursuit and skid techniques, water safety, interrogation techniques, surveillance training, and search warrant execution techniques. They also have an extensive classroom program at Glynco that includes criminal law, criminal procedure, and related disciplines. The classes contain agents from various agencies, and

3555-544: The capabilities lost with the retirement of the Space Shuttle . The act set out certain goals, such as being able to lift 70–100 tons into low earth orbit with evolvability to 130 tons, a target date of 31 December 2016 for the system to be fully operational, and a directive to use "to the extent practicable" existing components, hardware, and workforce from the Space Shuttle and from Ares I . On 14 September 2011, NASA announced their plan to meet these requirements:

3634-483: The composite-casing solid rocket boosters then in development for the canceled OmegA launch vehicle, and are projected to increase Block 2's payload to 290,000 lb (130 t) to low Earth orbit (LEO) and at least 101,000 lb (46 t) to trans-lunar injection . As of July 2021 , the BOLE program is under development, with first firing expected in 2024. The Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage (ICPS)

3713-419: The contract value by $ 800 million to complete the core stage 1 and have it delivered to Kennedy Space Center by December 2019. The OA also estimated that NASA would not meet its launch window of December 2019 – June 2020. The OA stated that cause of this is due to NASA’s lack of visibility into Boeing’s Stages Contract costs due to all three parts of the SLS project (core stage 1, 2, and EUS) are conjoined into

3792-533: The core stage. ICPS then performed orbital insertion and a subsequent translunar injection burn to send Orion towards the Moon. The ICPS will be human-rated for the crewed Artemis II and III flights. The SLS Block 1 has a conical frustum -shaped interstage called the Launch Vehicle Stage Adapter between the core stage and the ICPS. It consists of sixteen aluminum-lithium panels made of 2195 aluminum alloy . Teledyne Brown Engineering

3871-406: The cost of the program through 2025 to total at least $ 41 billion for four 209,000 lb (95 t) launches (1 uncrewed, 3 crewed), with the 290,000 lb (130 t) version ready no earlier than 2030. The Human Exploration Framework Team estimated unit costs for 'Block 0' at $ 1.6 billion and Block 1 at $ 1.86 billion in 2010. However, since these estimates were made, the Block 0 SLS vehicle

3950-404: The costs for both Boeing and SpaceX are more economic than the continued use of the Soyuz, with SpaceX providing the least costly option at $ 55 million dollars. Inspector General Act of 1978 The Inspector General Act of 1978 is a United States federal law (92  Stat.   1101 ) defining a standard set of Inspector General offices across several specified departments of

4029-416: The design for the SLS, with the Orion spacecraft as payload. The SLS has considered several future development routes of potential launch configurations, with the planned evolution of the blocks of the rocket having been modified many times. Many options, all of which just needed to meet the congressionally mandated payload minimums, were considered, including a Block 0 variant with three main engines,

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4108-427: The ending of federal funding by 2025 would pose serious risks to the completion of human health studies and technology gap studies. And since the 2025 timetable is not firm, NASA would have to also make plans for operations through 2028. The OA stated belief that both timetable and the proposal of transition to commercial utilization would pose many risks, specifically with keeping interest of the private sector to take on

4187-422: The enterprise of the ISS. NASA OA suggested that NASA’s Associate Administrator for NASA’s Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate should establish plans for additional 1-year missions to the ISS, ensure contingency plans for all intended research not planned to be completed by 2024, and develop plans and operations for the successful and safe destructive deorbit of the space station. In October 2018,

4266-497: The existing EUS design, incompatibility of the proposal with the height of the door of the Vehicle Assembly Building being only 390 feet (120 m), and unacceptable acceleration of Orion components such as its solar panels due to the higher thrust of the engines being used for the fuel tank. From 2009 to 2011, three full-duration static fire tests of five-segment solid rocket boosters were conducted under

4345-538: The first SLS, built at Michoud Assembly Facility by Boeing, had all four engines attached in November 2019, and it was declared finished by NASA in December 2019. The first core stage left Michoud Assembly Facility for comprehensive testing at Stennis Space Center in January 2020. The static firing test program at Stennis Space Center, known as the Green Run, operated all the core stage systems simultaneously for

4424-405: The first launch was originally scheduled for 8:30 am EDT, 29 August 2022. It was postponed to 2:17 pm EDT (18:17 UTC), 3 September 2022, after the launch director called a scrub due to a temperature sensor falsely indicating that an RS-25 engine's hydrogen bleed intake was too warm. The 3 September attempt was then scrubbed due to a hydrogen leak in the tail service mast quick disconnect arm, which

4503-473: The first time. Test 7 (of 8), the wet dress rehearsal, was carried out in December 2020 and the fire (test 8) took place on 16 January 2021, but shut down earlier than expected, about 67 seconds in total rather than the desired eight minutes. The reason for the early shutdown was later reported to be because of conservative test commit criteria on the thrust vector control system, specific only for ground testing and not for flight. If this scenario occurred during

4582-436: The four RS-25 engines, associated plumbing and hydraulic gimbal actuators , and equipment for autogenous pressurization of the vehicle's tanks. The core stage provides approximately 25% of the vehicle's thrust at liftoff, the rest coming from the solid rocket boosters. The stage measures 213 ft (65 m) long by 28 ft (8.4 m) in diameter and is visually similar to the Space Shuttle external tank . It

4661-486: The fourth flight; a further improved Block 2 configuration with new solid rocket boosters is planned for the ninth flight. After the launch of Artemis IV , NASA plans to transfer production and launch operations of SLS to Deep Space Transport LLC , a joint venture between Boeing and Northrop Grumman. The SLS is a Space Shuttle-derived launch vehicle . The rocket's first stage is powered by one central core stage and two outboard solid rocket boosters . All SLS Blocks share

4740-559: The head of the establishment nor the officer next in rank below such head shall prevent or prohibit the Inspector General from initiating, carrying out, or completing any audit or investigation, or from issuing any subpoena during the course of any audit or investigation." The Act and the Inspector General role were amended thirty years later by the Inspector General Reform Act of 2008, which created

4819-423: The heads of their agencies and to Congress on their activities every six months (5 U.S.C. § 405; IG Act, sec. 5). Many existing offices with names like Office of Audit, Office of Investigations, or similar were transferred, renamed, folded into the new IG offices. The core of the law is in 5 U.S.C. § 403 (IG Act, sec. 3(a)): "There shall be at the head of each Office an Inspector General who shall be appointed by

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4898-461: The high temperatures the engine section will experience due to their position adjacent to the solid rocket boosters. Later flights will switch to an RS-25 variant optimized for expended use, the RS-25E, which will lower per-engine costs by over 30%. The thrust of each RS-25D engine has been increased from 492,000 lbf (2,188 kN), as on the Space Shuttle, to 513,000 lbf (2,281 kN) on

4977-586: The payload would cost $ 1 billion for Orion and $ 300 million for the European Service Module . An October 2023 report found that recurring production costs for SLS, excluding development and integration costs, are estimated to be at least $ 2.5 billion per launch. NASA has said that it is working with Boeing to bring down the cost of SLS launches and that a higher launch frequency could potentially lead to economies of scale, and would allow fixed costs to be spread out over more launches. However,

5056-570: The rocket and boosters but also ground support and logistical arrangements. On 7 August 2014, the SLS Block 1 passed a milestone known as Key Decision Point C and entered full-scale development, with an estimated launch date of November 2018. In 2013, NASA and Boeing analyzed the performance of several Exploration Upper Stage (EUS) engine options. The analysis was based on a second-stage usable propellant load of 105 metric tons, and compared stages with four RL10 engines, two MARC-60 engines, or one J-2X engine. In 2014, NASA also considered using

5135-484: The rocket for Artemis I. It left Stennis on 24 April and arrived at Kennedy on 27 April. It was refurbished there in preparation for stacking. On 12 June 2021, NASA announced the assembly of the first SLS rocket was completed at the Kennedy Space Center. The assembled SLS was used for the uncrewed Artemis I mission in 2022. The first SLS, for Artemis I, launched an Orion spacecraft into a lunar orbit on

5214-579: The same contract line item number, creating difficulty in tracking expenditures. In November 2019, the NASA OA performed an audit on NASA's management of crew transportation and the Commercial Crew Program (involving The Boeing Company and Space Exploration Technologies , SpaceX), for the purpose of examining NASA's plans, progress, and spending for transportation to and from the International Space Station through U.S. based commercial spaceflight companies. A main point of concern, and

5293-420: The sixteen modernized engines. The RS-25E will further increase per-engine thrust to 522,000 lbf (2,321 kN). Blocks 1 and 1B of the SLS will use two five-segment solid rocket boosters. They use casing segments that were flown on Shuttle missions as parts of the four-segment Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters . They possess an additional center segment, new avionics, and lighter insulation, but lack

5372-566: The spending, finding that there was a significant difference in the funding being paid to the two companies. NASA had paid the Boeing Company an extra $ 287.2 million dollars above Boeing's fixed prices, a compensation that the NASA OIG found to be unnecessary due to risks within Boeing's schedule for flights 2 and 3 of the Boeing CTS-100 Starliner craft. Regarding this and other cost parameters outlining misuse of funds,

5451-402: The tank re-entered production and will be proof tested for strength, for use on Artemis III. As of July 2021, Boeing is also preparing to begin construction of the Exploration Upper Stage (EUS), which is planned to be used on Artemis IV . Originally planned for late 2016, the uncrewed first flight of SLS slipped more than twenty-six times and almost six years. As of earlier that month,

5530-411: The time limit based on an engineering review. On 29 September 2021, Northrop Grumman indicated that the limit could be extended to eighteen months for Artemis I, based on an analysis of the data collected when the boosters were being stacked; an analysis weeks before the actual launch date later extended that to December 2022 for the boosters of Artemis I, almost two years after stacking. In late 2015,

5609-556: The top graduate is designated the class honor graduate. The OIG employs about 190 people, including auditors, analysts, specialists, investigators, attorneys, and support staff. It has offices in 11 NASA facilities: NASA Headquarters , Dryden Flight Research Center , Ames Research Center , Jet Propulsion Laboratory , Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center , John C. Stennis Space Center , Langley Research Center , Kennedy Space Center , John H. Glenn Research Center , Goddard Space Flight Center , and George C. Marshall Space Flight Center . It

5688-635: The total RS-25 contract value to almost $ 3.5 billion. NASA has spent $ 26.4 billion on SLS development since 2011, through 2023, in nominal dollars. This is equivalent to $ 32 billion in 2024 dollars using the NASA New Start Inflation Indices. In 2024, the US Congress approved "up to" $ 2,600 million for the NASA Space Launch System. In January 2024 NASA announced plans for a first crewed flight of

5767-556: The umbrella IG agency, Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE). In May 2020, after a series of IG firings for questionable causes , several House Democrats introduced a bill, H.R.6984 , to amend the original act to protect against political retaliation and require just cause for IG dismissal. In 2022, Congress moved the language of the Inspector General Act of 1978 from

5846-684: The usage of SLS beyond the Artemis missions to launching NASA's robotic space probes and observatories . While the vibrations of SLS's large solid-rocket boosters have been at first thought to be incompatible with many scientific payloads due to the excessive vibration they generate, but on later analysis “[it] really was a nonissue at the end of the day.” As of October 2024, NASA has studied using SLS for Neptune Odyssey , Europa Lander , Enceladus Orbilander , Persephone, HabEx , Origins Space Telescope , LUVOIR , Lynx , and Interstellar probe . Initially, Congress mandated that NASA use

5925-401: Was automated for most sections of the core stage, saving 12 days in the schedule. The Artemis II forward skirt, the foremost component of the core stage, was affixed on the liquid oxygen tank in late May 2021. By 25 September 2023 the core stage was functionally complete, as all sections were assembled and the four RS-25 engines had been installed. As of May 2023 , the complete core stage

6004-489: Was built using existing Shuttle technology, including solid rocket boosters and RS-25 engines. As the primary launch vehicle of the Artemis Moon landing program, SLS is designed to launch the crewed Orion spacecraft on a trans-lunar trajectory. The first SLS launch was the uncrewed Artemis I , which took place on 16 November 2022. All Space Launch System flights are to be launched from Launch Complex 39B at

6083-561: Was dropped in late 2011, and the design was not completed. In September 2012, an SLS deputy project manager stated that $ 500 million is a reasonable target average cost per flight for the SLS program. In 2013, the Space Review estimated the cost per launch at $ 5 billion, depending on the rate of launches. NASA announced in 2013 that the European Space Agency will build the Orion service module . In August 2014, as

6162-456: Was fixed; the next launch option was at first a period in late October and then a launch in mid-November, due to unfavorable weather during Hurricane Ian . It launched on 16 November. NASA originally limited the amount of time the solid rocket boosters can remain stacked to "about a year" from the time two segments are joined. The first and second segments of the Artemis I boosters were joined on 7 January 2021. NASA could choose to extend

6241-450: Was set to ship to NASA in late fall 2023, eight months later than was predicted originally. The complete core stage was delivered in July 2024. For Artemis III, assembly of elements of the thrust structure began at Michoud Assembly Facility in early 2021. The liquid hydrogen tank for Artemis III was originally planned to be the Artemis I tank, but it was set aside as the welds were found to be faulty. Repair techniques were developed, and

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