Trump can pick up a NASA rocket for a moon's flight: what does it mean for Ilon Mask
In particular, she will not be able to participate in the landing of astronauts for a month in 2026. This powerful rocket launcher is a key element of NASA's monthly NASA program. With its help, NASA wants to return people to the moon for the first time since 1972. Is there a replacement for this rocket and how can Ilon Musk win from the possible negative development for NASA? The Conversation writes about it. In focus. Technology has appeared its Telegram channel.
Subscribe not to miss the latest and most intrusive news from the world of science! Initially, NASA planned to plant astronauts for the month already in 2024, then the launch was transferred to 2025, but now it is planned that the landing will take place in the fall of 2026. As part of the Artemis-3 mission, the powerful Space Launch System (SLS) rocket launcher should poison four astronauts on board Orion spacecraft from NASA.
When the ship arrives in orbit around the moon, there will be a Starship spacecraft from Ilon SpaceX, which will be launched separately. Two astronauts will move to this ship and land on the moon, and the ending field will return to the NASA ship again. Recently, American journalist Eric Berger, who writes about space, has suggested that there is a probability of 50 to 50, that NASA will not allow the use of SLS missile in missions for a month.
It has not been officially reported, but these rumors are suggested that the Trump administration may deprive NASA by part of funding and force the agency to use private companies for many missions. At the same time, preparation for planting for a month is not quite planned. This is due to the delays in the creation of new space suites, the technical problems with the Orion spacecraft, and the fact that SpaceX has not yet tested the monthly version of the Starship spacecraft.
It is important to note that NASA problems are not causing SLS, which showed itself well during the Artemis-1 monthly mission in 2022. Then the rocket successfully sent an orion unmanned ship. Billions of dollars have already been invested in the creation of a SLS missile and an infrastructure that Kennedy NASA in Florida. But this is a one-time rocket, unlike Ilona Starship Mask rocket (it consists of two degrees: in fact, a rocket launcher and a spacecraft).
NASA states that SLS is the only rocket in the world that can send the ship Orion, astronauts and cargo right for a month for one launch. But it costs more than $ 2 billion. Ilon Musk was introduced into the Trump administration as one of the two main cost seizures. The new US Presidential Administration intends to save up to $ 2 trillion federal budget.
Some experts indicate that Ilon Musk is not just a close associate of Trump, but also considers missions to Mars more priority than flights a month. A billionaire stated that he wanted to send people on a trip to Mars using his Starship ship by 2028. But experts believe that this is almost impossible. The most interesting thing is that it was during the first presidential term of Trump in 2017 that the Monthly NASA "Artemis" program was created, which became a continuation of the Apollo program.
While NASA has problems with the implementation of a pilot flight to a month, Ilona Musk is going a little better. Recently, the Starship rocket has made another test flight that showed that SpaceX was approaching the true use of a space rocket to explore space. It is important to note that Starship is a multiple rocket, unlike SLS. Thus, the rocket mask is more profitable for launching into space.
If SLS is taken away from NASA, will Starship be able to replace this rocket? Theoretically, the rocket could bring a spacecraft with astronauts into space and send them to orbit around the moon. In this case, Ilon Mask's spacecraft could serve as a landing module for descent on the surface of the moon. But will SpaceX do it? It is difficult to answer this question. Still, the SLS rocket has already been used for a monthly mission, and Starship is still in the test stage.
It is likely that another Ilona Mask's lace - Falcon Heavy will be used to fly astronauts a month. But SpaceX engineers will have to significantly modernize it, which will cause new delays in the execution of Artemis-3 mission. All this can cause China to plant its astronauts a month earlier than the US. It is still necessary to find out whether SpaceX or other private companies are ready to implement the ambitious NASA monthly.
It seems that now is economically unprofitable to refuse SLS rocket, given the billions of dollars spent and the level of its readiness for space flights. But how its further fate may become known at the beginning of next year. In any case, the Trump administration will have to justify his decision before Congress and the American public. As focus wrote, scientists believe that the oceans on Earth have appeared due to the invasion of space.