Monday, August 20, 2018

NASA might let SpaceX fuel rockets with astronauts on board

After nearly two years of debate, NASA has finally approved SpaceX’s plans to load propellant onto its rockets with people on board — a move that has been considered risky by some aerospace experts. However, the approval is contingent upon one thing: SpaceX must successfully demonstrate this fueling method at least five times on its new upgraded Falcon 9 rocket, the Block 5, before the process is certified for human spaceflight.

NASA announced this decision late Friday on its website, saying that safety was the space agency’s priority when moving forward with this. “To make this decision, our teams conducted an extensive review of the SpaceX ground operations, launch vehicle design, escape systems, and operational history,” Kathy...

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