Spacelifter: Turning the Space Launch System into a strong positive for America

In the 2010 NASA Authorization Act, Congress established the requirement for the Space Launch System (SLS). Further, Congress directed that the SLS be a Shuttle-derived system such that design elements and components of the Space Shuttle be used “to the extent practicable”. As an unmanned launch system, the SLS was to have the ability to launch 70-100 tons into Low Earth Orbit (LEO) with improvements increasing this to 130 tons. The successful 16 November 2022 unmanned test flight on the SLS showed that the core SLS—that constitutes the heavy space lift capability—is now ready to be used.

On 27 February 2025, ARS Technica reported: "One of the Republican space policy leaders most consistently opposed to commercial heavy lift rockets over the last decade—as an alternative to NASA's large SLS rocket—has changed his mind. "We need an off-ramp for reliance on the SLS," said Scott Pace, director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University, in written testimony. He issued the statement in advance of a hearing about US space policy, and the future of NASA's Artemis Moon program, before a subcommittee of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology."

Respectfully, such a view—increasingly popular especially by the SpaceX Starship supporters—has long failed to recognize the substantial value of America having a true heavy and oversize unmanned cargo spacelift capability. This video illustrates how the unmanned cargo version of the Space Launch System—rebranded as America’s “Spacelifter—can now be used to build an American national astrologistics infrastructure in LEO. The lack of an operationally safe and robust astrologistics infrastructure is the primary handicap preventing America from realizing its long-held dream to become a true human spacefaring nation. With the SLS/Spacelifter, this obstacle can be overcome.

As a footnote for the video, the video sequences of the LEO astrologistics infrastructure in the latter half of the video were created 20 years ago when the need for an American heavy and oversize spacelift capability was identified to enable America build REAL astrologistics capabilities in space.

Mike Snead, PE

President, Spacefaring Institute LLC

spacefaringinstitute@gmail.com