In a stunning display of quick reflexes, Elon Musk backpedaled on a threat to retire SpaceX’s workhorse Dragon spacecraft, just hours after the pronouncement. This comes amidst a fractured relationship with former President Donald Trump.
The spat originated on X, where Musk voiced his disapproval of certain policies, specifically the “big and beautiful” legislation, a move that reportedly drew Trump’s ire and a veiled threat to jeopardize government contracts held by Musk’s companies.
In a move fueled by this apparent disagreement, Musk initially declared the Dragon spacecraft would be grounded “immediately”.
However, cooler heads seemingly prevailed, as Musk responded with a prompt about a comment suggesting he take pause. He stated, “Good advice 👍. Ok, we will not retire Dragon.”
The Dragon spacecraft is critically important to NASA’s operations, acting as the primary vehicle for transporting both crew and cargo to the International Space Station (ISS). SpaceX holds multi-billion dollar contracts with NASA, with the Dragon regularly ferrying supplies and rotating astronauts, a vital service until the ISS’s scheduled retirement in 2030.
Any sudden disruption in Dragon’s service would severely impact NASA’s carefully planned ISS operations.
While NASA has the Boeing Starliner as an alternative, this option suffers from setbacks. Case in point: last year, two US astronauts were stranded at the ISS for months, eventually needing a rescue from SpaceX’s Dragon capsule.
Beyond its critical role in NASA missions, the Dragon spacecraft is also a key player in commercial space travel.
SpaceX has already completed six private astronaut missions, including orbital flights and visits to the ISS. The company is slated to launch another Dragon mission, in collaboration with Axiom Space, as early as June 10th, this time carrying four private citizens to the ISS.
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