Elon Musks Responds to NASA’s Spacesuit Problem, Offers SpaceX Assistance for Artemis Moon Mission

Elon Musk volunteers SpaceX's expertise to build spacesuits to help NASA save money on its planned Artemis mission. NASA has already spent $420 million on the study and Moon spacesuits, which failed to produce a practical one, according to reports. The Dragon and Falcon, according to SpaceX, are cheaper to build together.

NASA would use Boeing's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket for its Artemis Mission to launch a man and the first woman onto the Moon's surface.

Elon Musk Wants to Create SpaceX-Made Spacesuits For NASA

SpaceX's CEO and founder indicated that the company would be happy to build spacesuits for the space agency if needed or charged with the task. Musk responded to Michael Sheetz's tweet, which included screenshots of NASA's report on the Artemis mission's development this month, in preparation for the 2024 flight.

Musk and SpaceX want to step in and assume control of making a spacesuit that will protect astronauts on their trip onto and from the Moon's surface. Leaving the Earth's atmosphere exposes a person to various radiations and chemicals, such as the Sun's UV rays.

Thus, NASA will require an appropriate spacesuit for their Moon Mission. It must be up to date and useful in current conditions, as opposed to previous missions.

SpaceX's Falcon, Dragon Spacesuits Cheaper than NASA's

Tom Mueller's Twitter response to the NASA report claimed that the SpaceX Cargo Dragon and Falcon were created for less than $1 billion. The NASA spacesuits are reaching the midway point of their budget. Their delivery date is less than four years away, far ahead of the mission's deadline.

Musk acknowledges Mueller's claim that NASA's spacesuit developer squanders so much on developing the Artemis' many requirements.

Musk appears to be willing to bring the mantle for the Moon, treating it similarly to the Commercial Crew program, which has been a success for SpaceX.

NASA Artemis Moon Mission

NASA has provided an update on the progress of its Artemis mission in general. The space agency, per CNBC, revealed that they have already spent $420 million of their budget on developing prototypes of spacesuits. The space agency's entire budget is over $1 billion. Therefore, there is still $625 million left over for this project. For the time being, the report claims that the first set of spacesuits will arrive in April 2025, owing to delays caused by the epidemic. NASA expects to launch the Artemis mission in 2024.

After obtaining a $2.9 billion contract to deploy its Starship rocket to carry people to the Moon's surface, SpaceX became one of the essential parts of Artemis earlier this year. Musk said in a CNBC report that the 2024 timetable is doable.

Musk further said per Futurism that building long-term bases on the Moon and Mars is critical. NASA is already working on that long-term ambition as part of the Artemis program. Musk claims that the resources pouring in from SpaceX's NASA contract will make it much simpler to materialize.

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