hello. Welcome back to TechCrunch Space. What a week! Over the same seven days, we watched Boeing's Starliner launch the first astronauts into space, and then watched two astronauts dock with the International Space Station. And we also got to see SpaceX launch and bring home Starship for the fourth time. I think I'm not alone in thinking that some of the most stunning images in rocket history were created during those flights.
Learn more about the news and these two historic stories below.
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story of the week
This week's story is about Boeing's Starliner. After years of delays, an estimated $1.5 billion in cost overruns, and ongoing technical problems (yes, ongoing…), the Starliner spacecraft delivered its first two astronauts to the ISS. Of course, the mission is not over yet. After about a week aboard the station, the two astronauts will board the Starliner again and head home. We would all be looking forward to saying hello to them.
Releases of the Week
SpaceX has once again shown that rocket hardware can benefit from applying it to a real-world flight environment. In its latest launch, the company achieved a significant milestone in its Starship flight test campaign. That means returning the booster and upper stage to Earth via controlled sea spray. And the images and videos from this release are absolutely amazing.
What we're reading
Economist Pierre Lionnet took a closer look at SpaceX finances (which contain many assumptions because the finances are private) and how Falcon's low launch costs are tied to Starlink profitability and may not be passed on to customers.
