Recently, some inside the Trump Administration, the most prominent being Elon Musk, have called for NASA’s moon program, called Artemis, and the rocket designed for it, the SLS, to be cancelled. These critics have often said that it is too expensive, and that Musk may persuade Donald Trump to cancel the program entirely, opting to go to Mars instead. What is the SLS, and why does Elon Musk want to cancel it?
The SLS, or Space Launch System, is NASA’s new rocket, designed to carry heavy loads into space as well as people. It’s supposed to be used in the Artemis Program, NASA’s space program to return to the moon, for both the first time in 60 years and to begin staying on the Moon permanently. As well as going to the Moon, the Artemis Program also has the eventual goal of going to Mars and establishing a base there too. The SLS is a very expensive rocket, costing roughly $2 billion dollars per launch to use. For comparison, the Saturn V, the rocket used in the Apollo Program to send people to the Moon, cost roughly $185 million in 1969 dollars, or about $1.5 billion dollars in today’s money.
Many people, including SpaceX CEO and right-hand man of President Trump, Elon Musk, believe that the SLS rocket and the Artemis Program as a whole is a waste, for a number of reasons. Their first reason for believing that it’s a massive waste is because the program is very expensive, costing roughly $93 billion dollars since 2012. Because of the cost, they think that the SLS should be replaced with the Starship, the superheavy rocket being developed by SpaceX. Another reason that many believe it’s useless is because they believe, mostly because of Musk, that we shouldn’t be going to the Moon and instead go straight to Mars.
Those at NASA, however, believe that the SLS and Artemis as a whole won’t be canceled, even though it is very expensive. Part of the reason is because the only viable alternative at moment, Starship, is currently still in the development phase, and has an unreliable track record, frequently exploding in its test flights. Also, the Chinese Space Agency (CSA), is currently very invested in going and staying on the Moon, what many call a “second Space Race,” which could damage the United States if China succeeds in going to the Moon before the US.
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https://www.npr.org/2025/02/19/g-s1-49451/artemis-moon-nasa-sls-rocket-doge-musk
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/02/10/science/boeing-nasa-space-launch-system-sls/index.html
Do the Space Launch System and Orion have a future under the Trump administration?
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