If NASA were to re-open competition, one of the bidders could be SpaceX, which has already designed a basic spacesuit to support the private Polaris Dawn mission.
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If NASA were to re-open competition, one of the bidders could be SpaceX, which has already designed a basic spacesuit to support the private Polaris Dawn mission.
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NASA should let private companies do the “easy” stuff so they can focus on bigger and better things. And use the flow of private development money coming from venture capital or share offerings as a multiplier for their budget.
The numbers for Falcon and Dragon don’t back up what you’re saying. They were developed for less money than it would have taken NASA and are cheaper than other options. They’re also sold to non-NASA customers, which means a reduced unit cost from increased volume.
There’s also the issue of availability and readiness for all of those, where SpaceX wins handily.
Another example is the CLPS providers, which are expected to cover some of the development money and find more customers to make up that difference. They’re doing entire Lunar lander missions for less than the cost of an Atlas V launch.