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In this photo released on February 9, 2016 by NASA, a model of Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft, being developed in partnership with NASA's Commercial Crew Program, splashes a 20-foot pool in the center Langley Research Center. in Hampton, Virginia, during the test of the design of the landing systems of the spacecraft. On Wednesday, July 11, 2018, the US Government Accountability Office said that NASA needed a backup plan to bring astronauts into space, considering the additional delays to the horizon for new commercial crew capsules.
David C. Bowman / AP
NASA needs a backup plan to send astronauts into space, given the additional delays at the time. Horizon for new commercial crew capsules, Wednesday recommended the US Government Accountability Office. The SpaceX and Boeing crew capsules are under development.
Both companies fired on test flights by the end of the year. But the GAO warned in its 47-page report that despite the progress, further delays are likely. If adjournments continue to increase, the GAO fears that there is a hole in US access to the International Space Station.
With his last shuttle flight, seven years ago, NASA was paying Russia up to $ 82 million. astronauts to and from the International Space Station. But this contract is up at the end of next year.
"NASA is considering potential options, but it has no plan of urgency to ensure uninterrupted access to the United States," the report says. "NASA must balance safety with acceptable risk for manned spaceflight," the report says.
NASA's chief human explorer, William Gerstenmaier, said NASA lacks a consistent approach to badessing crew risks. The space agency is actively working on options to keep Americans alive and working, without interruption, at the station. He also noted that although the various documents to measure crew risk could be confusing, it is up to NASA's commercial crew program to ensure proper safety guidelines.
SpaceX and Boeing were the first to dismiss the Americans. US soil since 2014, three years after the end of NASA's shuttle program. It was then that NASA awarded contracts totaling nearly $ 7 billion to SpaceX and Boeing to develop crew capsules and demonstrate them in flight. The agreement provided for the certification of the spacecraft by 2017.
The SpaceX capsule is a reinforced version of the Dragon capsule, already used for the delivery of cargoes; Boeing's ship is named Starliner
Each company plans a test flight without pbadengers, before boarding astronauts.
Currently, there are three Americans at the space station, with two Russians and one German.
Associated Press Health & Science Department receives support from the Department of Science Education of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
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