2020 Reports on the Status of NASA's James Webb Space Telescope and Commercial Astronaut Crew Program for Space Station Transport: Continued Problems, Challenges, and Schedule Strain with Cost Implications

Two government reports by the GAO issued in late January 2020 detail ongoing issues with NASA's Commercial Crew astronaut capsule program and the James Webb Space Telescope.

Contents: A. NASA Commercial Crew Program: Significant Work Remains to Begin Operational Missions to the Space Station * 1. Background * 2. NASA Is Aggressively Pursuing Transition to First Operational Missions; Contingency Options All Have Limitations * 3. Collaboration on FAA Licensing Process Has Been Underway for Years, but NASA and FAA Have Yet to Finalize Mechanism to Communicate about Waivers * 4. Conclusions * B. James Webb Space Telescope: Technical Challenges Have Caused Schedule Strain and May Increase Costs * 1. Background * 2. Little Margin for Error Remains with Challenging Integration and Test Work Ahead NASA Has Addressed Recommendations and Sustained * 3. Oversight Improvements Since 2018

Since retiring the Space Shuttle in 2011, NASA has depended on Russia to transport astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS). NASA's Commercial Crew Program is a multibillion dollar effort to re-establish a U.S. capability to get a crew to space, but it is years behind schedule. NASA may have to continue to rely on the Russian transport option or risk losing access to the ISS in 2020. To fly as soon as possible, NASA has been planning to complete its reviews of the contractors' systems under aggressive time frames. This approach is risky because it assumes the contractors will complete multiple activities on time. Boeing and SpaceX must conduct additional test flights, train astronauts, and get a license from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). While NASA and the contractors continue to make progress developing crew transportation systems to help the United States re-establish its domestic ability to provide crew access to the ISS, uncertainty remains about when operational missions can begin. NASA's plans to compress the transition from completing certification to the start of operational mission may not leave enough time to complete key reviews. It also remains to be seen whether either contractor can finish manufacturing the hardware and training the astronauts in order to support NASA's planned time frames. In light of this uncertainty regarding when operational missions can begin, it is even more important that NASA complete action on our open recommendation to develop a contingency plan, with time frames, to ensure a presence on the ISS.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) project has made significant progress since GAO's last report in March 2019, such as completing testing of the observatory's individual elements and integrating them together in August 2019. However, new technical challenges have required the project to use more schedule reserve—extra time set aside in the project's schedule to accommodate unforeseen risks or delays— than planned. As of October 2019, the project had used about 76 percent of its available schedule reserve and no longer plans to launch in November 2020 (see figure). The project is now managing to a March 2021 launch date but estimates only a 12 percent likelihood that this date will be achieved. NASA plans to reassess the launch date in the spring of 2020.

This compilation includes a reproduction of the 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community.