The journalist's headline is fine. Neither NASA nor Boeing are neutral parties; it'd be improper to elevate their (self-aggrandizing) public relations statements to the status of objective reality.
The astronauts genuinely, factually, are "stranded" in space (or "stuck", in the v2.0 of the Guardian's title). This is inconvenient PR for the parties who are responsible for getting them stuck.
> I think their space suits are not compatible/rated for that.
The article says "If the Starliner is not safely operational, it’s possible Williams and Wilmore will have to catch a ride with the crew on SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft, which is also currently attached to the International Space Station on the opposite side."
So if that's false, it points to more issues with the journalism. The headline can't correct article text, because headlines are widely understood to be far less reliable.
I don't think Dragon has spare seats[1][2]. So sure, if one of the Starliner astronauts develops a medical emergency, they might be able to take Dragon on a ride down. But that leaves two other astronauts that has to ride down Starliner.
That said, yes I agree that the headline is slanted somewhat more anti-boeing than the public knowledge supports. Yes, the delay has been long and not a great look, but double and triple checking an experimental spacecraft with some _probably small_ (taking the article as gospel here) is a very sound course of action if you don't have somewhere you need to be.
Who makes the decision for SpaceX to step in - Boeing, or NASA? Very embarrassing for Boeing, but I presume NASA has the authority and decision to make.
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[ 5.2 ms ] story [ 49.9 ms ] threadBut I used the original headline anyway as per guidelines.
The astronauts genuinely, factually, are "stranded" in space (or "stuck", in the v2.0 of the Guardian's title). This is inconvenient PR for the parties who are responsible for getting them stuck.
After the reading the article, I think not.
1. The capsule is docked with the ISS.
2. the ISS has plenty of supplies to support both astronauts.
3. Most importantly, they can get home "with the crew" on the Dragon capsule docked to the other side of the ISS.
"Stranded in space" implies a lot of immanent danger that just doesn't seem to be there.
I think their space suits are not compatible/rated for that.
The article says "If the Starliner is not safely operational, it’s possible Williams and Wilmore will have to catch a ride with the crew on SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft, which is also currently attached to the International Space Station on the opposite side."
So if that's false, it points to more issues with the journalism. The headline can't correct article text, because headlines are widely understood to be far less reliable.
That said, yes I agree that the headline is slanted somewhat more anti-boeing than the public knowledge supports. Yes, the delay has been long and not a great look, but double and triple checking an experimental spacecraft with some _probably small_ (taking the article as gospel here) is a very sound course of action if you don't have somewhere you need to be.
[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crew_Dragon_Endeavour (4 passengers this flight) [2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX_Dragon_2#Crew_Dragon (4 seats)
That's fair too.
(Just FYI: "immanent" is a really cool word, but I think you intended a less philosophical one, "imminent").
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/immanent#English