Posted on 09/06/2020 6:32:31 PM PDT by BenLurkin
Back in April, according to Space News, a U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report assessing NASA's major programs put the estimated development cost of SLS at $8.75 billion and the ground infrastructure, called Exploration Ground Systems (EGS), at $2.33 billion. (Both figures are estimates from January, which were only published in April.) The new figures represent slight increases over the GAO estimates.
But NASA is more likely comparing the new numbers to its baseline 2014 estimates for the SLS and EKG programs. According to Space News, SLS was then expected to cost $7.02 billion and EGS $1.84 billion; the new estimates represent an approximately 30% increase over the 2014 numbers.
In a report published in March, NASA's Office of Inspector General did warn that the SLS program probably had exceeded the 30% budget overage rate threshold that mandates notifying Congress. The report added that NASA had not adjusted its baseline cost estimate back then to account for removing about $1 billion in costs related to SLS's solid rocket boosters and RS-25 engines.
According to Space News, Congress is unlikely to make major changes to either the SLS or EGS programs due to the notification. While the Senate has yet to take up the House's appropriations bill dealing with SLS and EGS, the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), has advocated for SLS in the past. Further, the House appropriated more money for SLS and EGS than the administration asked for, at $343 million more and $75 million more respectively.
(Excerpt) Read more at space.com ...
All of the spacex fanbois don’t mind that everything spacex does is shared with China. Elon Musk is a walking talking national security risk - he needs to completely cut ties with China before he can be trusted.
Because companies like Boeing and Lockheed have had $$$ ties to congress for decades.
Well, I guess I didn’t make myself clear.
I was looking for a ‘logical’ reason. LOL
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