Fiery Exchange Between Musk and Danish Astronaut
Elon Musk, the world’s wealthiest individual, engaged in a heated exchange with Danish astronaut Andreas “Andy” Mogensen after accusing former U.S. President Joe Biden of deliberately leaving two American astronauts stranded on the International Space Station (ISS).
- Musk’s comments were made in a Fox News clip featuring him alongside former President Donald Trump.
- He claimed NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams were stranded for “political reasons” by the Biden administration.
- Mogensen, a European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut, strongly refuted Musk’s claim.
Mogensen Challenges Musk’s Statement
Mogensen, who has traveled to the ISS twice, including on a SpaceX Crew Dragon mission in 2023, responded with strong criticism.
- He posted on X (formerly Twitter), calling Musk’s statement false and misleading.
- “What a lie,” Mogensen wrote, criticizing Musk for spreading misinformation.
- Musk retaliated with an offensive remark, claiming SpaceX could have rescued the astronauts months earlier.
NASA’s Official Rescue Plan
NASA clarified that Wilmore and Williams had a scheduled return plan via the SpaceX Crew-9 mission, set since September 2023.
- The astronauts initially flew to the ISS in June aboard a Boeing Starliner for an eight-day test mission.
- Due to thruster issues, NASA decided the Starliner should return without its crew.
- SpaceX was assigned the responsibility to bring them back safely.
Delays in Return Timeline
Although the return was initially scheduled for February, it was pushed to March due to SpaceX’s delay in preparing the Crew-10 mission.
- NASA announced Crew-9 would return with the stranded astronauts.
- Musk has not provided any evidence of an alternative rescue plan that could have been executed sooner.
Mogensen’s Final Response to Musk
Mogensen acknowledged Musk’s contributions to space exploration but emphasized the facts.
- He reminded Musk that NASA’s plan had been in place since last September.
- He pointed out that SpaceX is not sending a separate rescue mission but is following NASA’s scheduled plan.
- The astronauts will return aboard the same Dragon capsule that has been docked at the ISS since September.
This exchange highlights the ongoing debate surrounding space missions, politics, and public perception of private space companies.
