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Of course, the very fact that this was so routine is a testament to how far they've come and how safe and efficient the Falcon/Dragon combo is, especially compared to the Boeing Starliner shit show.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
If there was any political motivation at all it would simply be to save Boeing's arse. They're one of two commercial airliner manufacturers in the world, so the US clearly has a vested interest in keeping them running.
From the very same article: Q. Did politics influence NASA's decision for you to stay longer in space? Wilmore: From my standpoint, politics is not playing into this at all. From our standpoint, I think that they would agree, we came up prepared to stay long, even though we plan to stay short. That's what we do in human spaceflight The Ars article is filled with mixed messages. When Starliner had issues, the already…
So astronauts will answer direct factual questions truthfully - but their opinions are not going to be given in earnest, but rather 100% political.
And there was no prepared backup for Starliner. That launch had been delayed for years and by the time it actually got off the ground (which never should have been allowed), it was probably as much a shock to NASA (and Boeing) as to everybody else. The final plan was only decided long after the fact, and caused major issues.
I remember some discourse saying they were not "trapped" in space (as in physically unable to get to earth safely), they just didn't want there to be only one american crew member on the ISS, or something along those lines. Is anyone on the ISS now, or did they all come home?
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If I were involved in naming them, I’d add a “from Outer Space” just this time.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
They were not stranded with no way back home
And loved every minute of being up there. They were promised 8 days in space and got 8 months doing awesome science on the ISS. They’re astronauts; they live for this stuff.
I'm going ahead and deciding that astronaut is no longer the awesome job I thought it was when I was younger. I'm good on that.
maybe not on your lifetime but at the speed of current progress, maybe your son or grandchildren can become space settler to terraform mars in the next generation (that literally coolest thing ever)
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I used to think the term «TDS» was hyperbole, but I can see it clearly now. It really is a thing, and it’s mutated into EDS as well. People can’t be positive about anything even tangentially related to Those Who Shall Not Be Named, even a space rescue mission. It’s honestly just sad to observe.
I'm going ahead and deciding that astronaut is no longer the awesome job I thought it was when I was younger. I'm good on that.
maybe not on your lifetime but at the speed of current progress, maybe your son or grandchildren can become space settler to terraform mars in the next generation (that literally coolest thing ever)
Contributing to bringing Earth to a state where it will have to be "terraformed" itself: not so cool