SpaceX Moon Mission in Jeopardy: Musk Clashes with Trump Official After NASA Opens Lander Bids
NASA’s acting chief Sean Duffy has announced he will open the Artemis III lunar-lander contract to competition after SpaceX’s delays ts2.tech. Competing firms like Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin and a Lockheed Martin–led team are now eyeing the first crewed Moon mission, slated for 2028 to beat China’s 2030 lunar goal ts2.tech reuters.com. SpaceX’s Starship has made progress (recent test flights met key objectives ts2.tech ts2.tech) but the program is still behind earlier schedules kesq.com ts2.tech. On Oct 21, Elon Musk erupted on X (Twitter), calling Duffy “Sean Dummy,” questioning his space credentials (mocking the secretary’s past as a tree-climbing champion kesq.com)
