During a launch countdown, rockets must be continually checked to ensure that control pumps, motors, fuel levels, and myriad other systems and subsystems are operating normally. It takes sophisticated software to oversee this, and it is this software that will often autonomously make the call to terminate a launch right up until T-minus zero.

As it builds the Space Launch System rocket, NASA is updating this Spaceport Command and Control System software for the Kennedy Space Center. However, a new report by the space agency's inspector general, Paul Martin, finds this decade-long software development effort has fallen behind schedule and is on track to exceed its initial budget of $117.3 million by 77 percent, with cost estimates now increased to $207.4 million. Moreover, the inspector general criticized NASA for not adopting cheaper, commercially available launch software already used by Orbital ATK and SpaceX to launch their rockets.

To develop its new launch software, NASA has essentially kluged together a bunch of different software packages, Martin noted in his report. "The root of these issues largely results from NASA’s implementation of its June 2006 decision to integrate multiple products or, in some cases, parts of products rather than developing software in-house or buying an off-the-shelf product," the report states. "Writing computer code to 'glue' together disparate products has turned out to be more complex and expensive than anticipated. As of January 2016, Agency personnel had developed 2.5 million lines of 'glue-ware,' with almost two more years of development activity planned."

The decision by NASA's Ground Systems Development and Operations (GSDO) appears to be rooted in a culture at NASA and in Congress that favors large government launch programs for space, such as the Space Launch System. This large rocket ties together legacy hardware from multiple large aerospace contractors in favor of relying on launch systems from smaller, more nimble and commercial launch providers. This culture extends to software development, Martin said.

"The two companies under contract with NASA to deliver supplies to the International Space Station—Orbital Sciences Corporation and Space Exploration Technologies—both use commercial software products to accomplish their missions," Martin wrote. "In our judgment, the GSDO Program’s reluctance to change course reflects a cultural legacy at NASA of over-optimism and over-promising what the Agency can achieve in a specific timeframe."