NASA's Most Expensive SLS Mobile Launcher: $2.7 billion!

NASA contractor Bechtel is building the Space Launch System (SLS)'s Mobile Launcher 2. In the new NASA Office of Inspector General report, the projected cost of ML-2 will climb to $2.7 billion and not be ready until spring 2029. Politics is in play as to why this project has been allowed to become so expensive and why it won't be canceled.

Thumbnail background image credit: NASA (yes, that's ML-1, not ML-2)

In-video image and video credit: NASA, NASA OIG, Bechtel, ESA

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[kevinfarley]

How can they still be analysing the effects on the Mobile Launcher from the launch of first SLS launch?! SpaceX destroyed the pad on the first Starship/Super Heavy launch and had the pad rebuild with improvements in no time at all! And have carried out another three launches!

[Laurencemardon]

Couldn't NASA give ME an award fee? Admittedly i haven't done anything to help the space program, but at least i haven't squandered billions of dollars.

[rudivandoornegat]

Did they already start with construction? Why not a static launch tower? And a building (steel box) that moves away for the launch?
For this new price the launcher should catch the SLS, give it a wash, and then paint it too.

[aguer]

SpaceX Mechazilla launch towers and the oil rig launch towers cost less than $100 million each. Oil rigs that they sell later...

[stevecam]

Why don't they pay SpaceX to design and manage construction of the launch platform for NASA? Pay SpaceX $300 million and give them 15% of any savings they make from the $2.7 billion budget currently forcast. SpaceX developed the Crew Dragon with $2.1 billion contract.

[Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

It sounds like NASA needs a management overhaul.

[Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

*_"...is over budget and going to slip its schedule..."_*

And in OTHER breaking news:
*"WATER WET, SKY BLUE, FIRE HOT"*

[chile]

Just imagine Mechazilla catching the booster on this upcoming test. How many catches will Space X's towers have before this money pit monstrosity is complete by 2029?

[stocky]

Apparently the Burj Khalifa only cost ~$1.5 Billion. I get a little "passionate" when people say space flight is a waste of money but oh boy does NASA waste what they do have. Do you think they will ever resolve their overspending issue? I know that would upset a lot of contractors and also congress too but so be it.

[paulpark]

SpaceX just built the second tower in 2 months. Why does Bechtel take 10 years?

[mrrolandlawrence]

is this a one use tower? because the SLS rockets are all different sizes / efficiencies / builds. also they are not "new". The crawlers are from the 1960s and there are no new ones. Loving this channel and "Eager Space". These 2 channels give you a heads up for what is going to happen in the coming 2-3 years. No need for daily feeds.

My bet is that Orion can fit on space X super heavy with some adaptation and that SLS will be scrapped even though NASA will have paid upfront billions for it all.

[regolith]

A genuine fear that China lands astronauts before Artemis is the only thing that *might* force Congress to make better decisions. Bill Nelson himself has articulated this concern to Congress, speculating that China might treat the Moon the way they've treated the South China Sea, and land their astronauts, put up a fence around the lunar South Pole, and say "This is ours. You stay out."

[ross]

This is a truly outrageous price for a mobile launch tower. The upgrades to this and the EUS on SLS Block 1b are genuine threats to the future of the Artemis programme I'm afraid to say 😔

[ASMRARTHOR]

If the launcher is only used once, then both the rocket and launcher are one and done. That balloons the cost for every launch.

[jtjames]

You read my mind. I was just thinking about this yesterday.

[daze]

I’ve been helping build the ML2, I’m not surprised it’s ran over it’s budget. But it is an insane project, just wait for it to be done.

[Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

LAURA: Who is this _"Boeing"_ you speak of?
🤭🤭🤭

[meinking_sensei]

The entire SLS/Orion program is just so sad

[jamesturnbaugh]

NASA spent a lot of money rehabbing the old ARES launch tower, that probably should have been spent on a proper tower. The old tower was designed to launch a scaled-up bottle rocket and was never intended to handle fuel lines and cryogenic propellants. The SLS is heavier and all the infrastructure that was added to the tower did not help. It is like NASA has forgotten how to spec and build a launch tower. Maybe they can find someone that has had more recent experience building launch towers, certainly across the world there must be some country or person that knows how to build launch tower reliably.

[planetsec]

NASA didnt even get ULA to build extra ICPS's just in case this situation happened, its not like I-Hab and other Gateway modules can't be launched to Gateway seperately. I'm so looking forward to more delays after Artemis III, while we wait for ML-2 and EUS, yaay