By 
March 10th, 2022
Credit: NASA
How best to keep NASA’s sight on Mars? A status update and review of NASA’s Artemis program was held on March 1 by the U.S. House Science, Space, and Technology Committee.
It reviewed NASA’s plans and progress on Artemis—the heavy-lift Space Launch System, the Orion crew vehicle, the ground systems, the space suits, the human landing system, the cislunar orbiting Gateway station, and the many other systems, payloads, and operations that will support planned missions to the Moon in preparation for the next giant leap–being the first nation to land humans on the surface of Mars.
NASA’s Artemis program.
Credit: NASA
Missing in action
Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson’s (D-TX) opening remarks are telling, noting that:
“More than four years after Artemis was started, NASA still has not established an overall architecture for the initiative, and NASA is now saying it hopes to have one by the end of the year.”
“More than four years after Artemis was started, NASA still has not developed the specific objectives that it is to pursue, or how they will fit together to support the goal of humans to Mars. NASA says it hopes to have them in the coming months.”
Credit: NASA
“More than four years after Artemis was started, no one appears to be in charge of the entire Artemis initiative. It is still largely a collection of individual projects rather than an integrated program managed by an empowered program manager, something that has been raised as a serious concern in the witness testimony for today’s hearing.”
Key witnesses
This March 1 hearing involved key witnesses:
– Mr. James Free, Associate Administrator, Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
– Mr. William Russell, Director, Contracting and National Security Acquisitions, U.S. Government Accountability Office
– Dr. Patricia Sanders, Chair, Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel
– The Honorable Paul K. Martin, Inspector General, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
– Mr. Daniel Dumbacher, Executive Director, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
To view the hearing, go to this video at:
Also, take a read of this informative charter for the hearing at:
https://science.house.gov/imo/media/doc/keeping_our_sights_on_mars_pt_3_charter.pdf
Posted in Space News
