It looks like we won't be able to return to the moon by 2024.

Probably the man will not be able to return to the moon by 2024, for ... wardrobe issues. A NASA report dated August 10 indicates that the development of the new spacesuits, announced just under two years ago, is delayed by about two years. The suits, according to the report, are expected to be ready no earlier than April 2025, and it's a very optimistic scenario. It is evident that missing the moon suits by 2024 becomes rather complicated.

The development project of the new spacesuits started in 2007, well before the Artemis plan, precisely to send the man back to the moon, took shape at the behest of Donald Trump. NASA has already spent about $ 420 million, and plans to spend another $ 625.2 million for a total of $ 1 billion. In fact, the problem is the now distant genesis of the project, which has been modified over the years several times according to the objectives of the period - and of the various administrations. This has led to multiple postponements and repeated cost increases.

The current spacesuits, which are used for example on the International Space Station, have always been the same for decades now, without updates or technological improvements; and they are not suitable for long walks on the lunar soil. NASA had already taken into account some delays for the current design, called xEMU, but not enough: 12 months, and now we are already almost double. No one had predicted a global pandemic; that alone caused at least three months of delays.

The new design has also caused problems for the suits' wearable hardware: the so-called Display and Control Unit which sits on the forearm and which astronauts use to regulate critical suit functions. Circuitry had to be redesigned in various areas of the suit to ensure that communication between the suit, the astronaut and his colleagues worked flawlessly. To all this were added the classic problems of mismanagement that are cited in such situations - inadequate communication between the various teams, too dense and pressing schedule of commitments, the arrival of so many new and inevitably inexperienced staff.

According to Elon Musk, NASA's problem is that there are "too many cooks in the kitchen", especially as 27 outside companies are involved in the supply of parts and components. And he said SpaceX could take over the project if the need arises.