Many think that Elon Musk focuses on Tesla more than his other projects. But those who follow his activity should know that there are much bigger and more important projects rather than Tesla. And when saying this, we mean SpaceX. Remember this name, because, in the near future, it will change the direction of human development. In fact, our assumptions are based on what projects it is currently working on, how much it invests in them, who the clients are, and other important data. For instance, today, we learned that NASA has added 12 more missions under its Commercial Resupply Services-2 (CRS-2) contracts. And what’s more important, 6 of them were ordered to SpaceX.
NASA’s CRS-2 Missions
In 2016, NASA signed CRS-2 agreements with three American companies. According to the contracts, those firms should ensure continuous science and cargo delivery for NASA and its international partners to the International Space Station.
It’s essential for the crew members at the International Space Station. Otherwise, they won’t be able to continue to conduct scientific research and technology development. The latter not only benefit people on Earth but also help NASA and its partners to successfully implement their missions to the Moon and Mars.
Gizchina News of the week
The maximum potential value of the contracts can’t exceed $14 billion. But NASA doesn’t pay the whole money on one go. We mean, it orders missions as needed. Therefore, it makes payments according to the ordered missions. Moreover, the values vary from mission to mission. Shortly, the companies that resupply cargo to the International Space Station will get different orders.
SpaceX is a Key Partner
For instance, on September 30, 2021, SpaceX launched NASA’s 23rd resupply service. The Cargo Dragon spacecraft delivered more than 4,800 pounds of research investigations, crew supplies, and vehicle hardware to the orbiting outpost.
Getting back to the latest orders, NASA awarded 6 out of 12 to Northrop Grumman. The second group of resupply missions consisting of 6 orders was awarded to SpaceX. Both should provide resupply services to the station through 2026.
However, this is not the first time that NASA adds more missions. Back on October 16, 2020, NASA added two missions to Northrop Grumman’s contract and three to SpaceX. In total, there were 32 missions ordered by NASA for cargo resupply missions under the CRS-2 contracts. Among them, 14 missions were ordered to Northrop Grumman, three missions to the Sierra Nevada Corporation (now Sierra Space), and 15 missions to SpaceX.
As you can see, Elon Musk’s SpaceX is one of the most important and reliable partners of NASA.
