i would REALLY love to know what new technology the SLS resulted in...The artemis seems to me to mostly be a boondoggle, of mostly US pork.
It´s mostly a jobs/money deal for the US states where the work get´s done, supported by their states politicians.
The pols don´t care that maybe other companies (US) can do better for 1/10 the cost in 1/4 the time.
Don´t get me wrong.
These cadillac programs with no expense spared, usually deliver excellent results, and often deliver very valuable spinoffs.
In technology, formulas and theory, materials science, all sorts of extremely valuable stuff.
In a US youtube video, where they are making the rocket parts, the program manager states that they have 5% margin from planned load to explosive failure.
Dont recall, maybe mcdonnel douglas, one of the big US aerespace companies.
For comparison, typical car/bridge/lifting margins are mandated at 500% proof to 1000% failure load.
So the rocket parts are about 40x "better".
This is materials science, maths and formulas. Extremely valuable.
E:
It is very difficult to make the *first* aerospace 3d hollow grid of mostly empty metal to make a very stiff light spar - aeroplanes etc.
It is very easy and cheap to mostly copy it, even by eyeball, for 90% of the results for 0.01% of the costs.
So the artemis probably cost 10x too much, due to US acquirement policies,
BUT it will likely deliver 10.000x its cost in benefits within 20 years.
And most of the 10x4 benefits will stay in the US, as the early adopter of new tech gets most of the big early benefits.
So probably some new company spinoffs, making millionares of the founders, but employing 1000s of US grads at 100-200k per year to develop and deploy the new tech, in endless new apps and fields.
And the thousands of new employees will largely spend most of the new wealth throughout the US economy.
It´s a very good idea for a government to spend money on education, and R&D, as this typically gets the government a 5:1 - 10:1 benefit in lifetime taxes and reduced government costs.
Doing this through an artemis program is just another way to do the same.
from my current knowledge of the program - it aint shit. 30 year old tech. i hope you're right.