NASA Panel Puts Lunar Mission Launch Count at 22
A recent safety panel meeting has produced a specific figure for the number of Starship flights needed to fuel a lunar mission.
By Camila Rodriguez ·
Twenty-two. That is the figure NASA officials are now discussing for the number of Starship launches required to fuel a lander for a mission to the Moon, according to a recent agency safety panel meeting.
The specific launch count emerged during the quarterly meeting of the NASA Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel on Thursday. Panel member Charlie Precourt, a former NASA astronaut, addressed the risks associated with the Artemis Program and its goal of landing people on the Moon.
This number has long been a closely guarded and fluctuating target within NASA. For years, the agency has declined to provide a firm figure, citing ongoing calculations. In 2023, the then-director of NASA's Human Landing System, Lisa Watson-Morgan, stated, "We have a general idea, but I'm reluctant to say exactly what that is."
Following that, the estimate was described as being in the "high single digits to the low double digits," a range that could imply around a dozen launches. Other officials have referenced figures in the "high teens." The underlying hope has consistently been that improvements in Starship's lift capacity would reduce the number of tanker flights required to fuel a lander for a journey beyond Earth orbit.
However, some NASA officials now express concern that these anticipated improvements are not materializing quickly enough. The issue is whether SpaceX's Starship can play a significant role in returning humans to the Moon for NASA as part of the Artemis Program within this decade.
The process involves a depot Starship launching into low-Earth orbit, followed by a series of tanker flights to fill it with liquid oxygen and methane propellant. This fuel enables the lander to travel to the Moon, land, and return to lunar orbit.
While the new figure of 22 launches has been discussed, it is not yet a final, official number. The source material does not state whether this specific estimate has been formally adopted by NASA or what its implications are for the current Artemis timeline.
Source: Ars Technica
