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Why is the first crewed test of Boeing’s Starliner so important?
This is a huge step towards expanding the capability for sending astronauts to orbit from US soil, with Boeing’s Star-liner soon to be complementing SpaceX’s Dragon in providing commercially operated flights to and from the International Space Station (ISS).
Having two different ways of getting into space brings both resilience and competition, which are vital components for the continued operation of the ISS and the future commercial space stations that are in development. We expect to see ESA Astronauts on board Starliner soon, and this could include astronauts from the UK.
The ISS provides a unique environment for cutting-edge scientific research that benefits us all back on Earth. So it’s really important that we have options for getting there.
We already have SpaceX taking astronauts to the ISS from the US, why do we need an alternative?
SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft has been flying to and from the space station for some years now. But ideally, we want more than once company able to provide this service. There’s a concept known as ‘dissimilar redundancy’ which is really important in all aspects of spacecraft design.
Essentially, if there were to be an issue with one spacecraft it would usually be grounded while we figure out what’s gone wrong. Having another, spacecraft with a different design offers an alternative route into space, maintaining our ability to get astronauts to and from the ISS safely.
Will having two companies providing flights reduce the cost of space travel?
SpaceX deserves huge credit for bringing the cost of launch down dramatically over the last decade but, as with any other market, competition will help bring prices down.
For NASA, the European Space Agency and the UK Space Agency, it’s very important to get the most value from the taxpayer money we spend. This is why NASA made sure that there were two companies developing two different spacecraft capable of trips to the ISS.
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