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Pandemic to cost NASA up to $3 billion
A NASA audit concluded that costs imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic on the agency could reach $3 billion, with several major science and exploration programs accounting for much of that cost.
A March 31 report by the NASA Office of Inspector General (OIG) stated that the agency expects that the pandemic's effects on the agency, ranging from closed facilities to disrupted supply chains, to be nearly $3 billion. Of that, about $1.6 billion came from 30 major programs and projects, defined by NASA as those with a total cost of at least $250 million.
[...] The project with the largest cost increase in the report is the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, formerly known as the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST). It reported $3 million in costs because of the pandemic in fiscal year 2020, but estimates nearly $400 million in additional impacts in future years. The mission has a lifecycle cost of $3.9 billion.
[...] The Space Launch System had the second-highest cost increase in terms of overall dollars, at $363 million, of which $8 million was in fiscal year 2020 and $355 million in fiscal years 2021 through 2023. A three-month delay in the first SLS mission, Artemis 1, along with "rephrasing production" each accounted for about one-third of the costs. The rest came from "surge costs" to compress schedules as well as the costs of facility shutdowns.
The Orion spacecraft suffered $146 million in costs, including $5 million in fiscal year 2020 and $66 million in fiscal year 2021. Because the Orion spacecraft for the Artemis 1 mission was nearly complete at the time the pandemic hit, the largest effects were on the Orion spacecraft for the Artemis 2 and 3 missions, both still in production. Those problems extended to Europe, with delays in the production of the European Service Module for the Artemis 2 Orion.
(Score: 0, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 07 2021, @10:18PM (14 children)
Like so many orgs - universities, musea, libraries, public schools - living off the government teat, NASA could continue doing nothing but run in maintenance mode for the entire run of the "pandemic" yet to go.
Grants are going to continue being paid, salaries are going to continue being paid, rents are going to continue being paid, and peers at the NSF are going to continue funneling money on. It's only the poor fools in private industry that actually have to produce something to get paid.
(Score: 4, Touché) by Tork on Wednesday April 07 2021, @10:22PM (13 children)
🏳️🌈 Proud Ally 🏳️🌈
(Score: -1, Troll) by Ethanol-fueled on Wednesday April 07 2021, @10:45PM (12 children)
The post office is world-renowned for its good benefits, fat pensions, and actual diversity. Hell, I think it would be good to offer them a domestic monopoly on shipping, and anybody who has experienced the cheap felonious Mexicans of FedEx and UPS manhandling their packages would agree.
After we kick the Jews out of it, of course. We don't want them interfering with elections, or anything, like they tried to do last time.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Tork on Wednesday April 07 2021, @11:17PM (8 children)
It turns out the GOP's strategy of "appeal to white people's fear of strangers" doesn't work when, for example, someone of the Jewish Faith becomes part of your family by marriage. Normally I would have said "Muslim Faith" but one day you're gonna say the wrong thing in front of the wrong person and my words will echo in your head.
🏳️🌈 Proud Ally 🏳️🌈
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Thursday April 08 2021, @03:36AM (7 children)
He's late to the party. The big bomb was dropped on the post office with the pension rule imposed in 2006 [ips-dc.org]. Congress has a real opportunity to fix it now, but will most likely squander it to expediency. Whatever happens to the post office presents no threat to their reelection.
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 08 2021, @04:12AM (3 children)
Machinery was removed last summer.
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Thursday April 08 2021, @04:21AM
Yes, he added to the problem. That's in the past. Congress can still cut the losses, if they are interested.
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 08 2021, @11:24AM (1 child)
Yeah, that 2002 Dell was *critical* to prevent COVID / BLM outrage / voter suppression.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 08 2021, @01:39PM
Your news sources are omitting important details.
(Score: 2) by FatPhil on Friday April 09 2021, @01:39PM (2 children)
https://www.boston.com/culture/entertainment/2020/05/11/john-oliver-postal-service
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 09 2021, @02:29PM (1 child)
"Alderaan, it's been destroyed!" "Eh, it's just as well, they hadn't winterized their power stations anyway."
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Friday April 09 2021, @05:50PM
Trumps actions were comparatively inconsequential. We have an ongoing problem that needs to be fixed now, and the democrats are dragging their feet. Even an executive order could fix it until congress passes legislation.
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 08 2021, @12:16AM (2 children)
Having recently talked to a 28 year carrier now working in postal maintenance, he told me that there is no pension, only a pre-tax contribution option, and salaries are a lot lower and conditions are worse than private carriers like UPS.
(Score: 2) by Reziac on Thursday April 08 2021, @01:15AM (1 child)
When I asked a couple years ago, I was told that temporary USPS positions start at $17/hour. What does UPS pay entry-level employees?
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 08 2021, @02:54PM
Don't know about entry level, but he said at 30 years' service, he was making 60k, highest paid USPS low level employees could make 90k, while established UPS drivers were supposedly making 6 figures.