Posted: September 21, 2023 8:17 pm ET | Last Updated: September 21, 2023 8:17 pm ET | A second Independent Review Board on the NASA-ESA Mars Sample Return mission concludes that the mission cannot be completed on the cost and schedule NASA advertises. The current design would cost $8-9.6 billion and alternatives could cost as much as $11 billion. Launches cannot take place until at least 2030. The IRB-2, chaired by Orlando Figueroa, also criticized how NASA is managing the program and communicating the importance of returning samples from the Red Planet.
I’m really conflicted on this one. Behind schedule and $10 billion will inevitably turn into even more behind schedule and even more money. The opportunity cost of the money is a big part of that.
I’m also still holding out hope that SpaceX will get Starship to Mars and back some time in the 2030s, but maybe that’s too naïve or optimistic of me.