NASA is reportedly seeking rocket components from Boeing Co. (NYSE:BA) and Lockheed Martin Corp's (NYSE:LMT) joint venture, the United Launch Alliance (ULA).
Costs Ballooned
In a report by Bloomberg on Wednesday, it was said that the Exploration Upper Stage of the agency's Space Launch System, which has been built by Boeing, has been plagued by delays and costs ballooning to over $2.8 billion.
Instead, the agency seeks to use the ULA-built Vulcan rocket's Centaur V, which uses the same propellant as the SLS, during the lunar mission, anonymous sources familiar with the matter said in the report, though the plan isn't set in stone.
Former Shift4 Payments Inc. (NASDAQ:FOUR) CEO and NASA's current Administrator, Jared Isaacman, had earlier announced that NASA was exploring alternatives to Boeing's Exploration Upper Stage as the agency aims to standardize the vehicle configuration for the mission. Isaacman also announced that the Artemis IV mission would be landing on the moon instead of the Artemis III, as earlier planned.
NASA's Artemis, SpaceX's Starship
The news comes as NASA had delayed the launch of the Artemis II vehicle due to issues with the rocket. The agency rolled back the SLS vehicle from its launch pad on Kennedy Space Center in Florida after NASA engineers observed “interrupted flow of helium."
Meanwhile, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has expressed confidence in the company's Starship rocket, sharing that the V3 rocket will be able to achieve full reusability amid a shift in focus for the company towards the Moon and away from Mars.
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