Russia's Space Woes Stress NASA's Need for Private Spaceships
Denise Chow - Space.com
The recent delay of the next manned launch to the International Space Station due to a damaged Russian space capsule highlights NASA's critical need for commercially built vehicles, space policy experts say. The Russian Soyuz spacecraft was originally scheduled to launch to the orbiting outpost on March 29, but the capsule was damaged in a botched pressure test and is unusable for the upcoming flight. Instead, Russia is preparing the next spaceship on the line, which means the liftoff will occur no earlier than May 15, NASA's space station program manager Mike Suffredini announced Thursday.
Private spacecraft move forward as Soyuz struggles
David Shiga - New Scientist
All eyes are on commercial space companies in the wake of the latest setback for Russia's space programme, which has delayed the launch of the next crew to the International Space Station. A recent flight of a private rocket bodes well for the fledgling industry, but the coming weeks should reveal whether the industry can really take off. Russia's space agency Roscosmos reported last week that the Soyuz capsule meant to take astronauts to the station on 30 March sprang a leak when the air pressure inside it was accidentally pumped too high during a test. Another Soyuz capsule is being prepared for launch in its place but will not be ready to fly until 15 May.
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