SpaceX CEO Elon Musk is continuing to burn bridges with the space community.
One former astronaut is even challenging him to step foot in a rocket himself — a cutting dig at Musk, since even though he's made establishing an interplanetary presence for humankind his life's goal, he's never actually traveled to space himself.
"Hey Elon Musk, when you finally get the nerve to climb into a rocket ship, come talk to the three of us," tweeted former NASA astronaut and current US senator Mark Kelly.
To understand the squad of former astronauts Kelly was talking about, it's important to understand that Musk has been brewing unprecedently bad blood with the space-traveling community since earlier this month, when he claimed that astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore, who became stranded on board the International Space Station due to the failure of Boeing's Starliner spacecraft, "were left up there for political reasons."
The unfounded claim — the pair's return flight next month was planned out last summer, and the idea that their extended sojourn had anything to do with politicking makes no sense, since it was a black eye for the Biden administration — sparked outrage among former astronauts.
"What a lie," European Space Agency astronaut and former ISS commander Andreas Mogensen tweeted. "And from someone who complains about lack of honesty from the mainstream media."
"You know as well as I do, that Butch and Suni are returning with Crew-9, as has been the plan since last September," Mogensen tweeted. "Even now, you are not sending up a rescue ship to bring them home. They are returning on the Dragon capsule that has been on ISS since last September."
The rebuke infuriated Musk, who tore into him in a characteristically childish tantrum, using a slur against people with intellectual disabilities.
"You are fully r*tarded," the richest man in the world seethed. "SpaceX could have brought them back several months ago. I OFFERED THIS DIRECTLY to the Biden administration and they refused."
Other retired astronauts quickly jumped to Mogensen's defense.
"I was the Commander of the ISS when [Mogensen] flew his first space mission," replied former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly — the twin brother of Mark Kelly, the former astronaut referenced above — who has a lengthy history of feuding with Musk. "He is one of the most competent, trustworthy, and honest people I’ve ever met. This rhetoric is beyond the pale but, sadly, not surprising. He does not deserve this kind of disrespect."
Apart from calling former astronauts slurs, a fuming Musk piled on hours later by suggesting that the ISS should be destroyed "as soon as possible," years earlier than originally planned. He further charged it only serves as a distraction in his plan to "go to Mars" and that the station "has served its purpose," willfully ignoring the important work scientists are still conducting on board the ISS.
The bizarre proposal came off as vindictive given the timing — especially considering SpaceX already secured a lucrative $1 billion contract with NASA to deorbit the station starting in 2030.
In short, perhaps Kelly is right — Musk should consider climbing into a rocket and blasting into blast into space, instead of incessantly tweeting potshots at those who've already risked their lives.
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