Following the tension between US President Donald Trump and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, NASA and Pentagon officials have begun talks with alternative space companies to reduce their dependence on SpaceX.
NASA administration is looking for an alternative to SpaceX
Trump’s threat to cancel federal contracts with SpaceX has escalated tensions. In response, Elon Musk threatened to disable NASA’s Dragon capsule, which carries astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS). However, he soon backed down from this decision. This incident caused serious alarm in NASA and the Pentagon.
NASA currently relies entirely on SpaceX for astronaut transportation and connections to the ISS. The Pentagon is also heavily dependent on this company for the launch of sensitive military satellites. The risks of this one-sided dependence have pushed officials to new searches.
NASA officials contacted Rocket Lab, Stoke Space and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin companies to obtain information about rockets and space vehicles. There have also been talks for the Dream Chaser cargo vehicle developed by Sierra Space.
Space agencies are focusing on the dangers of being dependent on a single company. This move aims to create a more competitive and diversified space industry. Such a strategy could prevent similar political or commercial tensions from disrupting space operations in the future.
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