NASA’s selection of SpaceX for the lunar landing block is considered regulatory

SpaceX’s rivals have condemned NASA’s choice to hand over to Elon Muskin to build the unmanned lunar landing system. They believe the evaluation process is unfair.

The gender of U.S. public agreements on Friday said NASA did not violate existing rules by selecting SpaceX to build its future moon landing block, thus rejecting competitors Blue Origin and Dynamics’ demands.

The $ 2.9 billion drone landing system (HLS) construction project was awarded to Elon Muskin in April. But the selection was contested by marginalized competitors, who argued that NASA’s evaluation process was unfair and that the space agency should have named several winners.

However, the congressional body responsible for auditing the Public Accounts (GAO), in its initial call for NASA’s programs, insisted that “there is a right to nominate multiple winners, one winner or another.” Financial positions. GAO’s announcement was a blow to Blue Origin in particular, and its offer was considered strong after SpaceX.

“Basic Problems”

The founder of Blue Origin, billionaire Jeff Bezos, released an open letter to NASA this week offering the agency at least a $ 2 billion discount to reconsider its choice. Blue Origin responded to the GAO’s announcement on Friday that it could not resolve the “fundamental issues” of the original ruling because of its limited judgment. “We will continue to insist on two instant suppliers because we firmly believe this is the right solution,” a spokesman said.

“The HLS project needs more competition now than in the future – this is the best solution for NASA, the best solution for our country,” he added. Since the failure of the tender, Blue Origin has led an intense campaign to overturn the decision, which led to the passage of a $ 10 billion approval bill for the U.S. Senate body. But the text is still being debated in the House of Representatives and has been called by his critics a “bailout for Bezos.”

SpaceX, NASA’s first private partner

SpaceX’s accepted offer includes a lunar version of its starship prototype. The latter, under development, should enable large groups and cargoes to be carried deep into space for voyages and be able to land vertically on Earth like other celestial objects. Through the Artemis program, NASA plans to send humans back to the moon in 2024 and create an orbiting lunar station before sending a man to Mars in the 2030s.

SpaceX, founded by Elon Musk in 2002, is currently a major private shareholder in the US space agency. Its crew began using Dragon modules to take astronauts to the International Space Station last year, while rival Boeing did not successfully complete the drone. Last week, SpaceX was awarded the contract to launch a NASA mission from Jupiter to Europa, where a probe will detect signs of life.