SpaceX's first Starship test flight in April carries the risk of significantly delaying the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Artemis program to develop a sustainable human presence on the Moon, according to a report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO). NASA's Artemis III flight is currently planned to take off in 2025, and the GAO's report shares that several portions of SpaceX's Human Landing System (HLS) development are taking longer than NASA programs typically do based on average historical data. Other key constraints identified for a 2025 launch include delays with the new spacesuits that Axiom Space is designing for lunar use.

根據美國政府問責辦公室(GAO) 的一份報告，SpaceX 於4 月進行的首次星艦試飛可能會嚴重推遲美國國家航空暨太空總署(NASA) 的阿爾忒彌斯計劃，該計劃旨在開發人類在月球上可持續存在的方案。 NASA 的 Artemis III 飛行目前計劃於 2025 年起飛，GAO 的報告指出，SpaceX 載人著陸系統 (HLS) 開發的幾個部分所花費的時間比 NASA 項目通常根據平均歷史數據所花的時間要長。 2025 年發射確定的其他關鍵限制包括 Axiom Space 為月球設計的新型太空衣的延遲。

In-Space Propellant Transfer Remains Key Hurdle To Successful Starship Demonstration Says GAO Report

SpaceX's mission architecture for its Starship HLS lunar lander involves launching a fuel depot to space and then filling it up. Once the depot is full, the HLS lander will dock with it to fill up and then start its journey to the Moon. According to the GAO, demonstrating in-space propellant transfer requires successfully launching Starship into orbit. SpaceX's April Starship test flight ended up delaying key demonstrations. to make them uncomfortably close to a 2025 Artemis III launch.

GAO 報告稱，太空推進劑轉移仍然是星艦演示成功的關鍵障礙 SpaceX 的星艦 HLS 月球著陸器的任務架構包括將燃料庫發射到太空，然後將其填充。一旦倉庫滿了，HLS 著陸器將與其對接以裝滿，然後開始其月球之旅。據美國政府問責局稱，演示太空推進劑轉移需要成功地將星際飛船送入軌道。 SpaceX 四月份的星艦試飛最終推遲了關鍵演示。使他們不安地接近 2025 年 Artemis III 的發射。

The report outlines that for its April Starship test, SpaceX had planned to successfully demonstrate Starship ascent,  flight of the second stage stacked on the first stage and stage separation. However, company officials informed the agency that a fire inside the rocket caused its autonomous flight termination system to destroy the rocket and prematurely end the test.

該報告概述了 SpaceX 計劃在 4 月的星艦測試中成功演示星艦上升、第二級堆疊在第一級上的飛行以及級分離。然而，該公司官員告訴該機構，火箭內部起火導致其自主飛行終止系統摧毀火箭並提前結束測試。

SpaceX and NASA have delayed multiple "key events" for the HLS program to 2024, says the GAO, with eight out of 13 key events delayed by six to 13 months. SpaceX has to complete eight key events between November 2023 and the Artemis III flight, and this assessment was made before this month's orbital test flight that demonstrated stage separation and second-stage Starship engine ignition.

GAO 表示，SpaceX 和 NASA 已將 HLS 計畫的多個「關鍵事件」推遲到 2024 年，其中 13 個關鍵事件中有 8 個推遲了 6 至 13 個月。 SpaceX 必須在2023 年11 月至阿耳忒彌斯III 飛行之間完成八項關鍵事件，這項評估是在本月的軌道測試飛行之前做出的，該測試飛行演示了級分離和第二級星艦引擎點火。

The delays might also have safety implications for the HLS program as they will squeeze the timeline that NASA has to work with to ensure that Starship meets human spaceflight requirements, states the GAO. According to NASA and HLS officials, SpaceX has to demonstrate that Starship can make it to orbit before it can progress to other milestones, such as a pre-Artemis III uncrewed test and in-space propellant transfer.

美國政府問責局表示，這些延誤也可能對 HLS 計畫產生安全影響，因為它們將壓縮 NASA 必須合作以確保 Starship 符合載人航太要求的時間表。據 NASA 和 HLS 官員稱，SpaceX 必須證明 Starship 能夠進入軌道，然後才能取得其他里程碑，例如阿耳忒彌斯 III 前的無人測試和太空推進劑轉移。

However, HLS officials were confident that a successful test flight would accelerate SpaceX's design process, enabling the firm to lock in Starship's design. After the April test flight, NASA officials were uncertain whether Starship could meet the Artemis III December 2025 deadline, with the HLS program schedule requiring adjustments post-April.

然而，HLS 官員相信，成功的試飛將加速 SpaceX 的設計進程，使該公司能夠鎖定 Starship 的設計。在 4 月的試飛之後，NASA 官員不確定 Starship 是否能夠在 2025 年 12 月的阿耳忒彌斯 III 截止日期前完成任務，HLS 計畫時間表需要在 4 月之後進行調整。

The primary technical work areas that might cause a delay include the Raptor engine and the fuel depot. Operating the Raptor at certain performance levels is key for the engine's certification, and should it remain uncertified, then an alternative engine system cannot be developed in time. Talking to the GAO, SpaceX's representatives shared that they were able to collect valuable data for tanking and other operations after the April test. They added that SpaceX has assembled and tested hundreds of engines as part of an iterative design approach.

可能導致延誤的主要技術工作領域包括猛禽引擎和燃料庫。在某些性能等級上運行猛禽是引擎認證的關鍵，如果仍未獲得認證，則無法及時開發替代引擎系統。 SpaceX 的代表在接受 GAO 採訪時表示，在 4 月的測試後，他們能夠收集到用於儲罐和其他操作的寶貴數據。他們補充說，作為迭代設計方法的一部分，SpaceX 已經組裝並測試了數百個引擎。

For the on-orbit fuel storage system, the report outlines that program documentation shares that SpaceX has made little progress in maturing these technologies. Key systems that SpaceX has to develop include

對於在軌燃料儲存系統，該報告概述了專案文件，顯示 SpaceX 在成熟這些技術方面進展甚微。 SpaceX 必須開發的關鍵系統包括

According to the GAO, some of the systems that SpaceX has to develop are:

根據 GAO 的說法，SpaceX 必須開發的一些系統包括：

Those systems include docking sensors and mechanisms (to identify, locate, and then physically align the HLS Starship and the tanker Starship for fluid transfer); propellant measurement (to gauge the amount of propellant in the tanks and how much was transferred); and storage capability to mitigate fuel loss in space.

這些系統包括對接感測器和機制（識別、定位並物理對齊 HLS 星艦和加油機星艦以進行流體傳輸）；推進劑測量（測量儲槽中推進劑的量以及轉移的量）；和儲存能力，以減少太空中的燃料損失。

The report was written before SpaceX's November Starship test, which saw successful stage separation and engine ignition. Since then, footage from the facilities in Texas shows significant activity as SpaceX prepares Starship for its next test flight.

該報告是在 SpaceX 11 月的星艦測試之前撰寫的，這次測試成功實現了級分離和引擎點火。從那時起，德克薩斯州設施的影片顯示，SpaceX 正在為 Starship 的下一次試飛做準備，期間發生了重大活動。