The Webb telescope may have solved it.
I think it was actually more interesting when it was a clear disparity, because that might have been an opportunity to learn some new physics (and new physics will be required if we’re to venture beyond the solar system).
Jeff Foust has the latest at The Space Review.
An idle thought: If Boeing bails, is it possible that some other entity could pick up where it left off with Starliner and make money?
I just ran across this interview from a month or so ago, in which my name is liberally taken in vain.
The fiasco continues.
But hey, let’s keep giving them billions of taxpayer dollars for a launch system that is behind schedule and that no one needs except Boeing and its pet Congresspeople.
[Update a few minutes later]
More from Eric Berger.
[Update a while later]
This seems relevant: Our crisis of institutional incompetence. Fortunately, SpaceX doesn’t suffer from this. Yet.
[Update mid morning]
Thoughts on Boeing and the defense implications from Jared Isaacman.
Some additional context: the headlines of stranded astronauts are unfair and misleading, but not necessarily clickbait, as I think the public has a genuine interest in the situation. My comments on Starliner are based entirely on what is in the public domain and has been… https://t.co/KDPd7yjMJS
— Jared Isaacman (@rookisaacman) August 10, 2024
And yes, it is probably the most consequential safety decision NASA has made since Columbia.
[Late-morning update]
Has NASA’s safety culture changed since Columbia?
[Afternoon update]
The fall of Boeing is complete.
Oh, I don’t know. I think that they still have some room below.
A review of Greg Autry’s and Peter Navarro’s new book on China. Greg gave me a copy last Saturday at an event in downtown LA, but I haven’t read it yet.
[Update a while later]
“The book serves as both a wake-up call and a reminder of the importance of space exploration.”
I hate that phrase. It’s the importance of space development. Exploration is just a means to that end.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 10, 2024
We’re flying to Miami this morning, then taking the Bright Line to Orlando for a few days. Tomorrow is my brother’s birthday, and Thursday is graduation for my niece (his daughter) who is becoming a physician’s assistant. Friday we have a tour of SpaceX at the Cape. So blogging may be light.
Thoughts on flight rationale from Wayne Hale.
[Update a few minutes later]
OK, now I see why Wayne wrote that:
As NASA is working to balance all of these risks—the risk to crew on board Starliner, the risk of an uncrewed departure to the ISS, the risk to astronauts on board the space station, and more — Boeing has been lobbying to bring Starliner home with crew. Although NASA and Boeing engineers have yet to identify a root cause for the failure of the thrusters, Boeing has been urging NASA to accept “flight rationale” as a substitute. That is, Boeing believes it has provided enough data to NASA to be confident the thrusters will not fail in a catastrophic manner.
Boeing seems willing to risk the lives of the astronauts to save the vehicle. I don’t personally think it’s worth saving. I wonder what Boeing’s new CEO thinks?
Eric Berger has the latest.
NASA may be playing its cards too close to the vest here for its credibility.
No, funding is not his biggest issue. This is his biggest issue:
“And there are several companies building them right now,” he said in his presentation. “They’re basically an aircraft with a variety of engines, whether it’s a scramjet engine or rockets. It takes off and lands like an aircraft and it’s made of titanium. You can launch it and re-enter, and you can do it over and over again. And it’s a lot safer.”
Although some of Lauer’s website visuals and early plans call for a launching pad, Lauer said his development’s focus will be on horizontal takeoffs and landings and not launches.
Which companies? The only company that I’m aware of developing a horizontal takeoff and landing system is Radian, and they need a sled. To quote the former senator from Wisconsin in a different context, I wouldn’t give him one penny for this nutty fantasy.