NASA allocated $250 million in reserves to cover storage, personnel, and other launch delay costs for the Europa Clipper mission.
NASA's Inspector General Paul Martin indicated that an SLS will not be available to launch the Europa Clipper mission to Europa before 2025.
Mandatory use of the Space Launch System (SLS) will delay the launch of the Europa Clipper mission and increase its cost.
NASA's inspector general states that the agency could save nearly $1 billion if Congress allows it to choose the best launch vehicle for the Europa Clipper mission.
NASA has set a 2025 launch date as the Agency Baseline Commitment for the Europa Clipper mission.
The fiscal year 2019 appropriations bill requires the Europa Clipper mission to launch by 2023 using the SLS.
Congress could potentially save taxpayers up to $1 billion by allowing NASA to select the most cost-effective launch vehicle for the Europa Clipper mission.
NASA’s agency baseline commitment for the Europa Clipper mission is $4,250,000,000 covering all costs for the entire mission.
The Europa Clipper mission, planned for a 2023 launch, plans to use the same JPL clean room and has stricter cleanliness requirements that could force Psyche integration and testing to be conducted off-site.
NASA estimates that using the Space Launch System for the Europa Clipper mission will cost $876 million.
Congress has directed NASA to use the Space Launch System for the Europa Clipper mission.
NASA has terminated the magnetometer instrument called ICEMAG for the Europa Clipper mission.
The estimated cost for the Europa Clipper mission has risen significantly from earlier projections of around $2 billion.
NASA estimates that using either Delta 4 Heavy or Falcon Heavy for the Europa Clipper mission will cost $450 million.
By December 2018, the understaffing for the Europa Clipper mission at JPL grew to 67 positions.
NASA's Europa Clipper mission is currently scheduled for launch in 2023.
The launch date for the Europa Clipper mission has already slipped by a year from original plans.
The purpose of the Europa Clipper mission is to determine if Europa is potentially habitable.
NASA has advocated for using a commercial launch vehicle instead of the Space Launch System for the Europa Clipper mission.
The Office of Inspector General's report warns that the Europa Clipper mission may face further delays and cost increases.