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The #SLS and #Orion spacecraft projects are of such a scale that they spend money in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, creating #parochial interest in nearly every congressional district. It sounds like a straightforward argument: cancel the slow and outdated SLS and direct its $2.6 billion πŸ’° per year into novel public-private partnerships like #SpaceX’s #Starshiphttps://www.planetary.org/articles/why-we-have-the-sls
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#NASA found that protective β€œchar layer” material from the heat shield wore away unexpectedly during reentry in more than 100 locations. The material cracked and broke off the #spacecraft in pieces, creating a trail of debris, instead of melting away as it was supposed to. The spacecraft heats πŸ”₯ up to 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit during reentryβ€”about half as hot as the surface of the sun β˜€οΈ. Some bolts on Orion also unexpectedly melted and eroded. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/nasas-orion-capsule-heat-shield-wore-away-in-more-than-100-places-during-2022-test-flight-posing-significant-risks-180984296/

#Orion#Artemis