The upcoming historic return Moon landing by NASA might face significant delays

NASA’s ambitious plan of returning humans to the Moon by December 2025 is now making news. This time for lost the timeline, which they claimed will be completed by next to next year in 25.  However, as per experts, the moon mission has been deemed “unrealistic” and similar is the case with the US Government Accountability Office (GAO), which claims the same. In their recent audit report, the GOA which is an independent agency shared the non-partisan information to Congress. They claimed that they have analysed NASA’s Artemis program, which happens to establish a sustainable lunar base for scientific exploration.

The Key Findings of the Audit are enlisted as under:

Overly Ambitious Schedule: The GAO found NASA’s 13-month shorter schedule compared to the average timeframe for its major projects to be unrealistic, particularly for a complex human spaceflight mission.

Human Landing System Delays: SpaceX’s Starship program, chosen as the HLS (Human Landing System) for Artemis III, faces delays in its development. Eight out of 13 key milestones have been missed, and two orbital flight tests resulted in the Starship’s destruction.

Spacesuit Development Challenges: Axiom Space, responsible for developing the spacesuits for the mission, still needs to overcome significant design hurdles to ensure they meet the minimum life support requirements.

Consequences of Delays:

Now, the consequences of this delay as under:

• Uncertain Launch Date: The GAO’s findings suggest that the December 2025 target date for landing on the Moon is unlikely to be met.
• Increased Costs: Delays and technical challenges can lead to significant budget overruns, potentially jeopardizing the entire program.
• Loss of Momentum: Delays can dampen public and political support for the program, making future funding and resource allocation more challenging.