NASA announced it is looking for additional U.S. companies to launch astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) in the midst of Boeing facing issues with its Starliner spacecraft development. NASA selected Boeing and SpaceX to conduct rotational missions under the Commercial Crew Program. However, Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft has not been certified to carry humans. Boeing said it is inspecting its spacecraft’s valves and their second demonstration test mission to ISS has slipped until 2022. SpaceX has been launching NASA astronauts to the orbiting laboratory since 2020 when it returned human spaceflight capabilities to the United States, after NASA depended on Russia Soyuz for roughly a decade for crewed flights.

The agency released a ‘request for information’ from American companies that are developing technology “capable of providing safe, reliable, and cost-effective human space transportation services to and from the International Space Station to ensure a continuous human presence aboard the microgravity laboratory,” the agency wrote in a press release on October 20. “NASA is considering the acquisition of commercial crew space transportation services from one or more U.S. providers through commercial services contracts as the agency works to extend the life of the space station beyond 2024.” NASA hopes to find American companies who can certify their spacecraft can carry humans before 2027. “Depending on mission requirements, NASA may purchase single seats, multiple seats within one mission, or an entire mission,” they stated.

“NASA has a need for additional crew rotation flights to the space station beyond the twelve missions the agency has awarded Boeing and SpaceX under the current contracts,” said Phil McAlister, director of the commercial spaceflight division at NASA Headquarters. “Commercial crew transportation services are going to be needed into the foreseeable future, and we want to maintain competition, provide assured access to space on U.S. human launch systems and continue to enable a low-Earth orbit economy.”

To date, SpaceX has performed two out of six crewed operational missions and it is getting ready to launch Crew-3 to the ISS Lab by October 31st and Crew-4 in mid-April 2022. The agency also switched astronauts from a planned Boeing Starliner mission to train for a flight aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon instead, Crew-5. The decision will enable the agency to keep the Commercial Crew Program momentum going to support scientific research as Boeing continues to fix Starliner.

Featured Image Source:  NASA