Moonshot: Russia and the Costs of Failure?

Posted on by onespaceman2000

Yuri Borisov, who has red Roscosmos since July 2022, was dismissed from his position last Thursday. It was called a normal rotation. However, you may recall the failed Russian attempt to put its Luna-25 lander on the Moon in August 2023, which happened during Mr. Borisov’s tenure.

His replacement is Dmitry Bakanov, who served as a deputy transport minister. Mr. Bakanov also ran the Gonets Satellite System company before joining the government. Gonets is more-or-less the Russian version of SpaceX’s Starlink.

Roscosmos has been struggling the last few years with troubled missions, including a leaking in one of its International Space Station (ISS) modules and cancelled partnerships with other nations due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. That said, its Soyuz rockets and spacecraft continue to be major components supporting the ISS.

Boeing Layoffs are Bad News for NASA’s Artemis Program

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Boeing’s Space Launch System. (NASA)

As if things could not get worse over at NASA, it now has to contend with Boeing’s financial problems. Boeing is considering laying off about 400 employees working on the Space Launch System (SLS), or about one third of the employees working on the system. The SLS is the backbone of the Artemis program returning the U.S. to the Moon and eventually Mars.

This follows problems last year with Boeing’s Starliner mission to the International Space Station. The two astronauts on the first manned Starliner mission are still on the station due to safety concerns about their return to Earth on the same spacecraft that brought them to the station.

None of this portends well for Boeing, NASA, or the space industry in general. This may simply throw more work towards SpaceX, making NASA more reliant on a company whose head seems more interesting in tearing down the U.S. government than focusing on the U.S. space mission. Besides, after the loss of the latest Starship, SpaceX is not in any position to replace what would be lost with the SLS. The end of the SLS may simply mean the end of any chance for the U.S. to beat China to the Moon.

This may serve the interests of Elon Musk, who always preferred going Mars, but given the lack of preparation for such a mission beyond a rocket (including lessons learned from the Artemis program), it seems even the Mars mission may be drifting into the sunset.

We need a strong NASA and clear mission priorities that are achievable in the short term. With a billionaire tourist taking over as NASA’s new leader, we need to be very careful NASA does not simply become another Dancing with the Stars for C-list celebrity wannabes.

Space Quote: Astronaut’s Comment Shows Musk’s Statement is Unnecessary Drama

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Image (Credit): NASA astronaut  Sunita Williams. (NASA)

“I don’t think I’m abandoned. I don’t think we’re stuck up here…We’ve got food. We’ve got clothes. We have a ride home in case anything really bad does happen to the International Space Station. We’re in a posture … where we have the International Space Station fully manned and doing what the taxpayers wanted, to do world-class science. And so I feel honored, like I said, to be here and a part of the team.”

-Statement by NASA astronaut Sunita Williams to CBS Evening News regarding her extended stay on the International Space Station (ISS). Her comments were in reaction to false calls about the need for an immediate return of Ms. Williams and her fellow astronaut Barry “Butch” Wilmore, who arrived at the ISS via Boeing’s Starliner and were later added to a regular NASA mission. One might think Mr. Musk is trying to make SpaceX sound indispensable while making more money off of the situation.

Space Quote: Okay, Elon, We Already Took Care of It

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): The CST-100 Starliner approaching the ISS during an earlier uncrewed test flight in May 2022. (NASA)

“The @POTUS has asked @SpaceX to bring home the 2 astronauts stranded on the @Space_Station as soon as possible. We will do so. Terrible that the Biden administration left them there so long.”

-Statement tweeted by Elon Musk regarding the two astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) following issues with the Boeing Starliner. Of course, the issue was already resolved by NASA via mission rotations, so Mr. Musk’s comments are needless and self-serving. It’s just one more chance for him to get attention as though he has not already done enough to warrant it, including that very odd hand gesture he made on stage.