this post was submitted on 30 Nov 2023
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NASA Artemis Programs: Crewed Moon Landing Faces Multiple Challenges

https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-24-106256

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 11 months ago
[–] [email protected] 6 points 11 months ago (1 children)

I get anxious every time I remember there's only going to be one demo flight.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 11 months ago (1 children)

If it helps (it won't) Blue is doing their demo flight with a different design from their crewed vehicle.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 11 months ago

Huh you're right, it didn't help! Hopefully these missions will feel less insane once they're real.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 11 months ago (2 children)

They've made Orion look bigger than Starship - I don't know whether to laugh or cry

[–] [email protected] 3 points 11 months ago

They sized them based on their budgets

[–] [email protected] 2 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

Have the GAO been getting infographic lessons from Blue Origin?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 11 months ago (1 children)

What in the world are those depot proportions

[–] [email protected] 1 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

I mean, they made Orion look bigger than Starship, so maybe don't assume everything precisely is to scale.

That being said, if the depot has no "payload" other than the bare propellant tanks, with no heatshield, no flaps, and no header tanks, I wonder how much they could stretch a Starship. Since the depot is to be filled by tanker Starships, it wouldn't even need to make it to orbit with any propellant to spare, since it can just be refilled later.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 11 months ago (1 children)

So the lander remains in moon orbit? I wonder if they have any plans for it later 🤔

[–] [email protected] 1 points 11 months ago

They would need an even longer depot to get out there and refuel it first

[–] [email protected] 1 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

Acronyms, initialisms, abbreviations, contractions, and other phrases which expand to something larger, that I've seen in this thread:

Fewer Letters More Letters
GAO (US) Government Accountability Office
HLS Human Landing System (Artemis)
KSP Kerbal Space Program, the rocketry simulator

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