NASA is concerned that SpaceX is prioritizing mission schedule over safety after a recent ocean landing left all four astronauts briefly hospitalized. Former astronaut Kent Rominger, at an Oct. 31 Aerospace Safety Advisory Board meeting, cited a list of recent problems involving both SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule, calling the company I warned you.
“Both NASA and SpaceX must remain focused on safe Crew Dragon operations and not take ‘normal’ operations for granted,” ASAP committee members said Thursday. space news. Rominger also argued that ensuring safety requires increased attention to aging hardware, especially as the “pace of operations increases.”
SpaceX has documented multiple equipment failures and malfunctions since at least July, when the second stage of its Falcon 9 rocket failed to ignite its second burn, causing an explosion about an hour after liftoff. The unmanned mission ended the company’s nearly eight-year streak of success, and launches were halted for about two weeks. similar problem prompted Additional mission delays Both in August and September.
[Related: SpaceX’s historic Falcon 9 success streak met a fiery end.]
as gizmodo The most troubling problem appears to have occurred during SpaceX’s most recent International Space Station return mission, according to . After leaving the ISS on October 23rd, the Dragon capsule Scheduled water landing Two days later, off the coast of Pensacola, Florida. NASA later confirmed all four Crew-8 astronauts Necessary transportation “Out of an abundance of caution,” he went to a nearby hospital for additional medical tests. Doctors quickly released the three crew members and continued their mission. Post-flight repairs At Johnson Space Center in Houston, one astronaut who was in “stable condition” was kept overnight at Ascension Sacred Heart Pensacola “as a precaution.” To protect medical privacy, NASA will not say which astronauts required additional observation or what issues caused their prolonged hospitalizations.
In recent years, SpaceX has solidified its position as NASA’s primary private contractor for satellite launches, astronaut transport, ISS cargo delivery, and other rocket-related needs. While competitors like Blue Origin have tried to eat into the company’s industry share, their own setbacks indicate that SpaceX will continue to be one of the agency’s primary resources, but it’s likely NASA can continue to trust the safety considerations of private companies. At Thursday’s ASAP meeting, Rominger warned that NASA and SpaceX need to prevent increasingly tight mission schedules from “clouding their judgment.”
