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<\/p>\nThe Government Accountability Office has issued a report to Congress regarding NASA\u2019s James Webb Space Telescope, noting the significant risk of additional launch slips beyond June 2019 and the potential for the project to reach and even breach its $8 billion (USD) cost cap. The report follows the most recent launch delay, announced in September 2017, and expressly states that the telescope\u2019s prime contractor, Northrop Grumman, is the project\u2019s critical path to launch.\n<\/p>\n
GAO report \u2013 James Webb launch date \u201clikely unachievable\u201d:<\/b><\/p>\n
According to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report submitted to Congress Wednesday, 28 February, the James Webb Space Telescope is in danger of slipping even further beyond its current March-June 2019 launch window due to ongoing issues with integration and testing operations and prime contractor optimism.<\/p>\n
The significance of the finding, according to the GAO, is that the integration and testing period is \u201cthe phase in development where problems are most likely to be found and schedules tend to slip.\u201d<\/p>\n
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NASA\u2019s James Webb Space Telescope, set for launch NET 2019.<\/p>\n
The report specifically notes that at the end of February 2018, only 1.5 months of schedule reserve remained, meaning the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) now carries an earliest possible launch date, at this point, of No Earlier Than May 2019 \u2013 assuming no issues occur between now and launch.<\/p>\n
But with additional delays likely as integration and testing operations continue, the spacecraft\u2019s launch on an Arianespace Ariane 5 rocket will likely be delayed beyond the current March-June 2019 window.<\/p>\n
Of specific note and concern in the report is the fact that the telescope and its teams will have \u201climited cost reserves to address future challenges, such as future launch delays, and is at risk of breaching it $8 billion cost cap for formulation and development set by Congress in 2011.\u201d<\/p>\n
Perhaps most notable is a summary finding of the GAO, which notes that \u201c For several years, the prime contractor [Northrop Grumman] has overestimated workforce reductions, and technical challenges have prevented these planned reductions, necessitating the use of cost reserves. <\/p>\n
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