The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel (ASAP) is calling on NASA to reevaluate plans for the Artemis missions, citing concerns over multiple first-time goals set for Artemis 3, the agency’s first crewed lunar landing mission. ASAP members stress that each achievement comes with risks, and the multiplication of these risks increases the overall risk posture for individual flight missions.
The panel has previously discussed these challenges in its 2024 report, which mentioned 13 first-time objectives involving the Starship lunar lander and new Axiom Space spacesuits. These numbers have since increased, coinciding with plans to reformulate Orion’s Avcoat heat shield.
“This is not a zero-risk endeavor,” said Bill Bray, an ASAP member. “Each first milestone carries its own individual risk, which compounds when aggregated.”
Amit Kshatriya, deputy associate administrator of the Moon to Mars Program, has already been briefed on the panel’s concerns. SpaceX and Blue Origin are also making progress with their crewed lunar lander projects.
NASA is set to modify SpaceX’s approach to delivering cargo to meet evolving logistics needs. Meanwhile, Kent Chojnacki, deputy manager of the human landing system program, noted that both SpaceX and Blue Origin continue to advance with their respective projects.
Source: https://executivegov.com/2025/02/nasa-safety-panel-reevaluate-artemis-missiions