'Bad behaviors': Former NASA astronaut worried about Artemis II mission safety

By
Published  December 18, 2024 10:11pm EST
FOX 35 Orlando
Loading Video…

This browser does not support the Video element.

Former NASA astronaut worried about Artemis II mission safety

A retired NASA astronaut is sounding the alarm on safety with the Artemis II mission. Earlier this month, NASA said they finally figured out what went wrong with the heat shields from Artemis I. Pieces burned up during re-entry, but scientists studied the shields for two years and decided they're safe to fly. Not everyone agrees.

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. - A retired NASA astronaut is sounding the alarm on safety with the Artemis II mission. 

Earlier this month, NASA said they finally figured out what went wrong with the heat shields from Artemis I. Pieces burned up during re-entry, but scientists studied the shields for two years and decided they're safe to fly. 

Not everyone agrees.

Charles Camarda is a retired NASA astronaut who was with the agency for 18 years. 

He flew in the first mission after the Columbia tragedy. He says he’s worried about the current culture and what’s at stake with safety moving forward. 

"The Inspector General’s report showed there were 100 large pieces that came off that vehicle," said Camarda. 

The pictures from that report and decades of research he’s done are some of the main reasons why the former astronaut is concerned. 

"The way they’re attacking the problem is echoes of Challenger and Columbia, using exactly the same bad behaviors to understand the physics of the problem," he said. "They’re not using a research-based approach."

Camarda worries NASA is pressing ahead with the current heat shields because he says "a lot of the engineers are afraid to speak up, and that’s a serious problem."

MORE HEADLINES: 

Now, he's blaming the culture of the agency. 

"People think that NASA is this shiny castle on the hill, but it’s just as ugly as the on the inside as some of these corporations," said Camarda. 

Inside Kennedy Space Center on Monday, the Artemis II astronauts stood behind NASA’s decision.

"We could have talked about it a little bit more. I don’t control that, but I can tell you we were very aware. We were very aware of what was happening in that investigation," said Victor Glover an Artemis II astronaut. 

The astronauts who are flying are focused on meeting mission deadlines that have already been delayed multiple times so far. 

"Now, what’s most important is to get our focus on flying no later than April 2026," added Glover. 

FOX 35’s Esther Bower asked Glover: Do you think they’re dealing with we’re already way behind? We’ve already spent too much? We have to just move forward?

"Absolutely, absolutely," said the former astronaut. "Kicking the can down the road and not attacking this Artemis problem — I predicted exactly the path they would take because I researched the culture and was embedded in the culture."

He’s calling the culture into question with astronauts' lives on the line.

"An entire chunk might come off, and you might burn a hole in the capsule," he concluded. 

FOX 35 did reach out to NASA on Wednesday for comment on these concerns. They referred us back to the Dec. 5th press conference when NASA detailed how they came to this decision to use the heat shields. We’re going to get a statement up on your screen from that:

Nasa's Deputy Administrator, Pam Melroy, said: 

"…We didn’t give them [the investigation team] a timeline we gave them the resources that they needed to thoroughly investigate this and come back with the root cause. We had to understand why that erosion variation in the heat shield occurred to make sure our astronauts would be safe during Artemis II. As we’re looking ahead we know we’re going to learn a lot on Artemis II, and we remain committed to that learning and to the rigorous process that we have always adhered to keep our crews safe."

STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 35 ORLANDO: