TechCrunch Space: Discussing Starliner Has Also Become Wearisome for Me

Greetings, and a warm welcome back to TechCrunch Space. Before we jump into the latest updates, I’d like to take a moment to highlight TechCrunch Disrupt, our premier event this year. We’re excited to offer a half-day filled with insights from the space industry’s leading figures. Don’t miss out on the full program available here. We’re looking forward to meeting some of you in October!

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Frankly, the ongoing saga of Boeing’s Starliner is wearing me out as well, especially since the spacecraft has yet to return, and speculation is rife regarding NASA’s openness on the situation. In the absence of clear information, conspiracy theories are thriving, making it increasingly plausible that Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams might need a SpaceX Dragon for their journey back to Earth.

According to Eric Berger from Ars, an expert source hinted there’s more than a 50% chance the astronauts would return via Dragon; another indicated it’s very likely that NASA might opt for SpaceX’s craft for the return.

Should this scenario unfold, it casts a shadow over the future viability of the Starliner, despite Boeing sinking approximately $1.6 billion into the project, in addition to NASA’s $4.2 billion development contract.

Spotlight Launch of the Week

This week, SpaceX carried Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus spacecraft to the ISS, marking Northrop’s 21st commercial cargo mission for NASA. Interestingly, NASA chose not to send additional spacesuits needed for Wilmore and Williams, in case they needed to return on Dragon, as mentioned by agency officials in a press briefing last Friday.

Despite the launch proceeding according to plan, there was a brief moment of tension when NASA mission control informed astronauts on the station of a performance hiccup with the spacecraft; they later clarified that Cygnus missed a propulsion system burn due to a sequencing error. Nonetheless, Northrop Grumman engineers are devising a new burn strategy to ensure the spacecraft’s timely arrival at 3:10AM EST on August 7.

Catch the replay of the launch by clicking here.

I’m thrilled to share details about Vast’s ambitious plan for the pioneering private microgravity laboratory in low Earth orbit. Their Haven-1 module will provide a platform for Redwire Space, European space biotechnology firm Yuri, and potentially more, given the growing interest in ISS-based research. More scientific endeavors in orbit signify monumental progress for all of us.

This Week in Space History

On August 6, 2012, the Mars Curiosity Rover made its monumental landing on Mars, completing its nearly year-long voyage from Earth. Here’s a momentous clip from the Mission Control room during the final stages of Curiosity’s exhilarating touchdown. Did it move me to tears? Absolutely.