SpaceX’s rocket orbited the United States for nearly a decade.
Joe Burbank | Orlando Sentinel | beautiful pictures
NASA on Wednesday announced it has awarded five more astronaut missions to By Elon Musk SpaceX, with an additional $1.4 billion contract for the company.
Additional flights are part of NASA’s Commercial Crew program, carrying astronauts and cargo to and from the International Space Station. SpaceX is currently on the fourth operational human flight for the agency.
SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft competed with Boeing and its Starliner capsule for Commercial Team contracts. While both companies have now been awarded nearly $5 billion to develop and launch their respective capsules, SpaceX has won 14 missions and Boeing has won six. The latter has yet to launch astronauts with the Starliner.
Due to the delay and fixed price nature of NASA contracts for the program, Boeing has incurred $688 million in costs from delays and additional work on capsules. After successfully completed a pilotless Starliner flight to the ISS in May, the company now aims to carry astronauts for the first time in February.
Between SpaceX and Boeing, the agency has contracted for 20 flights to date, including crewed missions through 2030 when the ISS is expected to be decommissioned.
