In an audit released last week, the OIG said the mobile launcher 2 (ML-2), which was originally awarded a $383 million contract in 2019 for delivery by 2023 but only began construction at Kennedy Space Center last August, could continue to see ballooning costs and delays, so that once delivered it will cost taxpayers more than $2.7 billion and not be ready until 2029.

"Despite progress since our last report, NASA has struggled to develop a reliable cost and schedule estimate for the ML-2 project and incentivize significant improvement in contractor performance," reads the OIG report. "Given the importance of ML-2 for future Artemis missions, it is critical that NASA effectively manage the project to control cost increases and avoid further schedule delays."

The first Artemis launch took place in 2022 on the existing mobile launcher (ML-1), but ML-2 is needed to support a larger version of the Space Launch System rocket that will be used beginning with the Artemis IV mission.