Office of Inspector General - PDF document

1 NASA Office of Inspector General Off
NASA Office of Inspector General Office of Audits Report No. IG - 21 - 0 25 NASA’ S D EVELOPMENT OF EXTENERATION PACESUITS August 10 , 20 21 National Aeronautics and Space Administration Office of Inspector General To report, fraud, waste, abuse, or mis

2 management, contact the NASA OIGHotline
management, contact the NASA OIGHotline at 8009183 or 8008134 (TDD) or visithttps://oig.nasa.gov/hotline.html . You can also write to NASA Inspector General, P.O. Box 23089, L’Enfant Plaza Station, Washington, D.C.26. The identity of each writer and caller can be kept confidential, up

3 on request, to the extent permitted by l
on request, to the extent permitted by law. To suggest ideas or request future audits , contact the Ass istant Inspector General for Audits at https://oig.nasa.gov/aboutAll.html . R ESULTS IN B RIEF NASA’s Development of Next - Generation Spacesuits August 10 , 20 21

4 NASA Office of Inspector General Off
NASA Office of Inspector General Office of Audits IG - 21 - 0 ( A - 20 - 0 15 - 00 ) The development ofnew spacesuits is a critical component of achievingNASA’s goals of returning humans to the Moon, continuing safe operations on the International Space Station (ISS), and explor

5 ingMars and other deep space locations.
ingMars and other deep space locations. For extravehicular activities such as spacewalksor exploring the lunar surface, astronauts require Extravehicular Mobility Units (EMU), which includes W HY W E P ERFOR MED T HIS A UDIT W HAT W E F OUND As spacesuit development continu

6 es, evolving and competing requirements
es, evolving and competing requirements from key program stakeholders such as the HLS, ISS, and Gateway increases the risk of future cost, schedule, and performance issues. Additionally, prior to their use on ISS and Artemis missions, astronauts will require suits for training. However, tra

7 ining needs across the stakeholdersparti
ining needs across the stakeholdersparticularly the ISS and HLS rogramsdo not align with projections of whensuit hardware will be available. Specifically, the EVA Office is concerned there will not be sufficient quantities of training hardware available for early training events to support t

8 he currentplanned 2024 Artemis III missi
he currentplanned 2024 Artemis III missionAs NASA continues to develop and maturits nextgeneration spacesuit capabilities, the Agency must decide on its approach to procuringadditional suits for both ISS and Artemis missions. In October2019, NASA issued a Request for Information (RFI) to det

9 ermine industry capabilities to fulfill
ermine industry capabilities to fulfill future spacesuit needs.At that time, NASA intended to initiate a hybrid contract consisting of a single prime contractor for integration and multiple awards for development and sustainment known as the Exploration Extravehicular Activity Production and

10 Services (xEVAPS) contract. However, af
Services (xEVAPS) contract. However, after 18months NASA canceled the xEVAPS RFI and issued a new RFI in April2021 for the Exploration Extravehicular Activity Services(xEVAS)significantly altering its approach fr future suitacquisition by purchasing services instead of equipment.As previousl

11 y discussed, to date NASA has spent more
y discussed, to date NASA has spent more than $420 million on spacesuit design and development, but the new xEVAS RFI gives industry the choice to either leverage NASA’sdesigns or propose their own. Therefore, the extent to whichNASA’s investmentwill be utilizedis unclear. Additio

12 nally, the xEVAS RFI does not stipulatet
nally, the xEVAS RFI does not stipulatethat the suit be compatible with both the ISS and Artemisprograms, a distinction thatcould result in industry eveloping (and NASA purchasing) two different spacesuitsone for use in low Earth orbit on the ISS and another for use on the lunar surface durin

13 g Artemismissions. iven the Station
g Artemismissions. iven the Station’s limited expected lifespan, developing a suit solely forthe ISS may noprovecost effectiveTo ensure the successful development of the xEMU, we madefour recommendations to the Associate Administrator for the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Dir

14 ectorate, including (1) adjustingthesche
ectorate, including (1) adjustingthescheduleas appropriate to reduce development risks) developing an integrated master schedule to incorporate and align the hardware deliveries and training needs of the dependent ProgramsGateway, ISS, and HLSand the Flight Operations Directoratensuringtechni

15 cal requirements for the nextgeneration
cal requirements for the nextgeneration suits are solidified before selecting the acquisition strategy to procure suits for the ISS and Artemis programsand (4) developingan acquisition strategy for the nextgeneration spacesuits that meets the needs of both the ISS and Artemis programs.We prov

16 ided a draft of this report to NASA mana
ided a draft of this report to NASA management who concurred with our recommendations and described planned actions to address them. We consider the proposed actions responsive and will close the recommendations upon their completion and verification. W HAT W E R ECOMMEND ED For more inf

17 ormation on theNASA Office of Inspector
ormation on theNASA Office of Inspector General and to view this and other reports visit http://oig.nasa.gov/ . ��NASA Office of Inspector General IG025 ABLE OF ONTENTS Introduction ��NASA Office of Inspector General IG025ii Acronyms DVTDesign Verificati

18 on and TestingEMUExtravehicular Mobility
on and TestingEMUExtravehicular Mobility UnitsEVAExtravehicular ActivityFODFlight Operations Directoratefiscal yearHLSHuman Landing SystemISSInternational Space StationOffice of Inspector GeneralPGSPressure Garment ystemPLSSPrimary LifeSupport SystemRFIRequest for InformationSERFESpacesuit Ev

19 aporation Rejection Flight ExperimentVIS
aporation Rejection Flight ExperimentVISEVehicle Interface to Suit EquipmentxEMUExploration Extravehicular Mobility UnitsxEVAExploration Extravehicular ActivityxEVAPSExploration Extravehicular Activity Production and ServicesxEVASExploration Extravehicular Activity ServicesxINFOExploration In

20 formatics SubsystemxPGSExploration Press
formatics SubsystemxPGSExploration Pressure Garment SubsystemxPLSSExploration Portable LifeSupport Subsystem ��NASA Office of Inspector General IG025 NTRODUCTION The development ofnew spacesuits is a critical component of achieving NASA’s goals of returning humans to

21 the Moon, continuingsafe operations on t
the Moon, continuingsafe operations on the International Space Station (ISSor Station, and exploring Mars and other deep space locations. For extravehicular activities such as spacewalks, astronauts require Extravehicular Mobility Units (EMU), which includesthe spacesuit itself and the hardw

22 arethat physically connects the EMU to t
arethat physically connects the EMU to the ISSand other space systems. Currently, astronauts use EMUs that were designed 45 years ago for the Space Shuttle Programand rely on these refurbished and partially redesigned spacesuits for extravehicular activitieson the ISSNASA has been developing

23 nextgeneration spacesuittechnologyfor t
nextgeneration spacesuittechnologyfor the past 14 years and 5 years ago createdthe projectknown asthe Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Units (xEMU)As part of the Exploration Extravehicular Activity (xEVA) system, the xEMU willsupport astronauton the ISSand during future Artemis missions b

24 oth on the Gateway and during a lunar la
oth on the Gateway and during a lunar landing using the Human Landing System (HLS)In 2017, we reported that despite spending nearly $200million on extravehicular spacesuit development over a 9year period, the Agency remained years away from having a flightready spacesuit to use on exploration

25 missions.Since our 2017 reporton the Ag
missions.Since our 2017 reporton the Agency’s spacesuit development efforts, NASA has spent an additional $220 millionfor a total of $420 millionand a flightready xEMU remains about 4years away. This audit examines NASAdevelopment of nextgeneration spacesuits for ISSand Artemis mission

26 Specifically, we examinethe extent to wh
Specifically, we examinethe extent to which NASA is addressing challenges related to cost, schedule, and performance of the xEVA systemdevelopment and production.See Appendix Afor details of the audit’s scope and methodology. Background Astronautsmust wear spacesuitsessentiallypersonal s

27 pacecraftto keep themsafe in the harsh e
pacecraftto keep themsafe in the harsh environment of spacewhen outside the ISS, lunar lander, or any other capsule or spacecraftThere are two types of spacesuitsintravehicularsuitswhich are worn inside spacecraftand extravehicular suits, which are wornfor exploring outside of spacecraft. NA

28 SA has utilized spacesuits since 1959 fo
SA has utilized spacesuits since 1959 for both types of activities. TheEMUdesign was initiatedin 1974by Hamilton Standard and ILC Doverfor the Space Shuttle ProgramThis “baseline” EMU went into flight service in 1981and iNASA and ILC Dover developedthe “enhanced” versiont

29 hatis currentlyin use for spacewalks on
hatis currentlyin use for spacewalks on the ISSThe goal The Gateway will provide a staging location for lunar and deep space missions and, according to NASA, is essential to supportsustained Artemis operations. The HLSwill ferry astronauts from either the OrionMultiPurpose Crew Vehicle(Or

30 ion) capsule in lunar orbit or Gateway t
ion) capsule in lunar orbit or Gateway to the Moon’s surface.NASA OIGNASA’s Management and Development of Spacesuits , April 26, 2017 The xEVA ystem includes the suit itself (the xEMU) and the supporting projects and products necessary to safely use the suit in flight and while test

31 ing and training on the ground.While the
ing and training on the ground.While the first iteration of the EMU, known as the “baseline” EMU, was designed for contingency scenarios for the Space Shuttle Progrhe “enhanced” EMU was designed to accommodate an increase in the number of extravehicular activities required

32 to assemble, repair, and maintain the I
to assemble, repair, and maintain the ISS. ��NASA Office of Inspector General IG025of NASA’s ongoingspacesuit development efforts is build an xEMUto replace the ISS suits and toenable human exploration on the Moon and eventually in deep space environment, including m

33 issions MarsNextGeneration Extravehicula
issions MarsNextGeneration Extravehicular Spacesuit EffortsSince 2007, NASA has embarked on threeseparate extravehicular spacesuit development efforts: (1)the Constellation Space Suit System(2) the Advanced Space Suit Projectand (the xEMU, which has been funded by two separate Agency program

34 s (see Figure 1). Between 2007 andNASA
s (see Figure 1). Between 2007 andNASA developedspacesuit technologies in parallel through the Constellation Space Suit System and the Advanced Space Suit Project. When the Constellation Program was canceled in October 2010, NASA officials opted to continue portions of the Constellation Spa

35 ce Suit System contractthrough January20
ce Suit System contractthrough January2016 to develop spacesuit technologies.However, aftercancelation of theConstellationProgram, the Advanced Space Suit Project became NASA’s primary spacesuit technologydevelopment effort and resulted in the Z1 and Zpressure garment prototypes anda new

36 ly developed advanced portable lifesuppo
ly developed advanced portable lifesupport system for testing 2016, NASA consolidated the efforts from both projects under the Extravehicular Activity (EVAOfficeto continue inhouse development of thexEMU The Constellation Space Suit System contract was funded by the Orion Program from fis

37 cal year 2009 through fiscal year 2012.
cal year 2009 through fiscal year 2012. In fiscal year 2012, funding for the contract was transitioned to the ISS Program through fiscal year 2015.The Z1 pressure garment prototype consisted of separate efforts by Oceaneering International, Inc.and ILC Dover that were later integrated by NAS

38 A. The suit featured rear entry and a s
A. The suit featured rear entry and a soft upper torso with increased mobility through modified shoulder and hip joints and the ability to operate at different pressures. The Z2 prototype featured numerousupgrades from the Z1, including improved upper and lower mobility to allow astronauts t

39 o walk over rough terrain, kneel and pic
o walk over rough terrain, kneel and pick up objects, and rise from a supine position, all activities needed for future exploration missions. The Z2 also included weight reduction technologies and a composite upper torso. ��NASA Office of Inspector General IG025 ‹&#

40 x0089;—”‡ ͩǣ NA
x0089;—”‡ ͩǣ NASA’s Spacesuit Development Efforts, Fiscal Years 200 8 through 2021 Source: NASA Office of Inspector General (OIG) summary of NASA information. a rom fiscal year ϤϢϣϨ ƚŽ December ϤϢϤϢ͕ the ISSProgram provided funding to the EV

41 A Office. Since OctoberϤϢϣϫ, the Ga
A Office. Since OctoberϤϢϣϫ, the Gateway Program has provided fundingto the EVA Office. b Ɛ ŽĨ ĞĐĞŵďĞƌ ϤϢϤϢ͕ ƚŚĞ xEMU development cost was ΧϤϥϣ͘ϧ ŵŝůůŝŽn ƵndĞƌ ƚŚĞ WƌŽŐƌaŵ and Χϣ͘ϥ ŵŝůůŝŽn ƵndĞƌ ƚŚĞ Gateway Program.