Live updates: SpaceX to launch its Starship megarocket on a test flight to orbit
NBCJUN 2024
SpaceX's Starship Rocket Achieves Splashdown in Milestone Test
Image copyright: Jared Krahn via Wikimedia Commons
The Spin
Narrative A
Thanks to the ingenious work of Musk, his engineers, and all others competing in the space world, America is well poised to begin a new Space Age, for the betterment of the country and all of humanity. The incremental progress made is coming closer to getting people back to the Moon, and even Mars for the first time. We should all be awed at the huge innovations being made.
Narrative B
While this is certainly a huge step in space travel, Musk's persona could prove to be a stumbling block to this progress. On one hand, Musk is a polarizing public figure, and on the other, he is deeply embedded in federal contracting. Musk may not sustainably be able to be both in the long run, and he could potentially be excised from the government ecosystem unless he takes more moderate positions on issues.