Elon Musk and Trump tension escalates to space

Following political tension with former US President Donald Trump, SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk has raised the possibility of withdrawing the Dragon capsule, which NASA uses for space missions, from service. Musk's statement comes in response to Trump's remarks suggesting he could cancel federal contracts awarded to SpaceX and Starlink projects.

The Dragon capsule is currently the only American spacecraft capable of transporting humans and supplies to NASA's International Space Station (ISS). Developed by SpaceX, the capsule has been used regularly for astronaut transport missions since 2020. Meanwhile, the alternative Boeing Starliner capsule has yet to prove its reliability due to technical glitches and failed tests.

THE RUSSIA OPTION IS ON THE TABLE

If Elon Musk follows through and pulls the Dragon capsule from service, NASA may have to turn to Russia once again for crewed spaceflights. This would make the US dependent on Russian-made Soyuz capsules again after many years. The Soyuz systems were previously used by NASA and were criticized for costing millions of dollars per seat.

TESLA SHARES PLUMMET

The tension between Musk and Trump has affected not only space programs but also the stock market. Following Trump's harsh statements that government support for Tesla, along with SpaceX, would be cut, Tesla shares lost approximately 14 percent of their value, resulting in a 150 billion dollar drop in market capitalization.

News Source: 12punto