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SpaceX is rated “Acceptable” by NASA for Artemis’s mission contracts, while Blue Origin is rated “Very Good.”
The evaluation document reveals concerns about delays from previous missions that plagued previous SpaceX projects for NASA.
NASA selected SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Dynetics as their partners for the upcoming Artemis missions.
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SpaceX may be the undisputed leader in commercial space flight, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it will be the most capable when it comes to landing on the Moon, a new NASA assessment reveals. Last week, NASA announced the trio of companies it is partnering with to help send astronauts to the moon for the first time in decades. Those companies were SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Dynetics.
However, as Space News reports, NASA does not see SpaceX in the same light as its two pairs. SpaceX has long been a partner with NASA, but in terms of the company’s role in Artemis’s upcoming lunar missions, the space agency is apparently skeptical.
As expected, NASA evaluated all of its potential partners by choosing who it would dedicate money to for the next missions to the Moon. Blue Origin received a “Very Good” mark from NASA for its management rating and “Fair” for its technical rating, indicating that the company is capable and can trust that it can exert its weight when it comes to developing a module landing capable of sending humans to the lunar surface. Dynetics received “Very Good” on both counts. SpaceX? Not that much.
NASA was only able to muster technical and managerial ratings of “Acceptable” for SpaceX, making it the weakest of the group. NASA’s assessment offers detailed reasoning for why it believes SpaceX could be a risky partner for Artemis’s missions, and much of it is related to the many delays the company has suffered in the past.
Despite SpaceX’s past record of success and relevant relevant experience in developing complex hardware for space flight, the SEP also assessed that SpaceX’s proposal has significant weakness in the area of past performance that I consider remarkable.
Specifically, SpaceX’s performance record on two relevant contracts: its commercial crew contract for the development of its human-rated Crew Dragon vehicle and its Air Force Orbital / Suborbital 3 Program (OSP-3) contract for development Falcon Heavy Launch Vehicle: Both exhibited considerable delays in the schedule.
The evaluation (PDF) indicates that these delays “decreased [NASA’s Source Evaluation Panel’s] Confidence in SpaceX’s ability to successfully execute the proposed HLS development schedule. ” The document goes on to point out that these past delays can be positive, as the “lessons learned” from those projects can enable the company to successfully deliver on the new promises.
Apart from all this, NASA has already chosen SpaceX, Blue Origin and Dynetics as its partners for their next attempts at manned missions to the Moon.
Image Source: John Raoux / AP / REX / Shutterstock
Mike Wehner has reported on technology and video games for the past decade, covering the latest news and trends in virtual reality, handheld devices, smartphones, and future technology.
Most recently, Mike served as a technical editor at The Daily Dot, and has appeared on USA Today, Time.com, and countless other websites and in print. His love for
the reports are second only to his addiction to games.
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