Of these, the value is key for this domain Industry didn't have the appetite for this until very, very recently. To get anything done, gov had to create expert

Of these, the value is key for this domain Industry didn't have the appetite for this until very, very recently. To get anything done, gov had to create expertise (initially) and a market (later) for space exploration technologies and hope for efficiency to pick up in the industry. For the longest time, NASA existed almost exclusively to demonstrate technology and to create an environment where talent and tech could mature in the US. Now, that talent can be leveraged directly by market, thankfully. Blanket statements like "It'd have gone better with Industry" are potentially true, but miss the issue entirely: No highly-funded market for pictures of Mars, Neptune, Venus existed, essentially ever, including today.