>> Sreenivasan: FROM SATELLITE

LAUNCHES TO NEW SPACE

EXPLORATION, IT'S BEEN A BUSY

YEAR IN SPACE SO FAR.

LOREN GRUSH IS SENIOR SCIENCE

REPORTER AT "THE VERGE" AND IS

HERE WITH ME NOW TO DISCUSS

IT ALL.

SO, MOST OF US WERE PAYING

ATTENTION TO IOWA POLITICS, BUT

YOU WERE PAYING ATTENTION TO A

VERY BUSY WEEK IN ALL

SPACE-RELATED NEWS.

>> RIGHT.

>> Sreenivasan: IT STARTED OUT

WITH CHRISTINA KOCH, ASTRONAUT,

COMING BACK.

SHE'S GOT A COUPLE OF RECORDS.

BUT WHAT SHE'S DONE IN SPACE IN

ALL THAT TIME THAT SHE SPENT IS

PRETTY IMPRESSIVE.

>> RIGHT.

SHE SPENT A TOTAL OF 328 DAYS--

SO, NEARLY A YEAR-- UP IN SPACE.

AND WHILE SHE WAS THERE, SHE

MADE HISTORY WITH HER BEST

FRIEND AND COLLEAGUE, JESSICA

MUIR.

THE TWO OF THEM ARE CREDITED

WITH DOING THE FIRST ALL-FEMALE

SPACEWALK IN HISTORY, IN

SPACEFLIGHT HISTORY.

I MEAN, THAT'S PRETTY

INCREDIBLE.

AND THEY DID THREE TIMES.

SO, I THINK SHE'S DEFINITELY HAS

QUITE A LOT OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS

UNDER HER BELT WHEN SHE COMES

HOME.

>> Sreenivasan: AND NOW, I

MEAN, YOU SEE THESE IMAGES OF

HER RETURNING TO EARTH AND KIND

OF ACCLIMATING, AND SHE WAS

PSYCHED.

I MEAN, SHE TOOK THE HELMET OFF,

SHE'S LIKE, "ARRRGH!"

>> I ACTUALLY SAID TO MY FRIEND,

I THINK I KIND OF WANT TO GO TO

SPACE JUST SO THAT I CAN HAVE

THAT FEELING OF COMING BACK TO

EARTH BECAUSE IT'S GOT TO BE

EXHILARATING.

>> Sreenivasan: YEAH.

SO, LATER IN THE WEEK, WE ALSO

HAD KIND OF AN UPDATE TO SOME OF

THE THINGS THAT PEOPLE WERE

FIGURING OUT ABOUT THE STARLINER

PROJECT.

WHAT WAS HAPPENING?

>> RIGHT.

SO, RIGHT NOW, THERE ARE TWO

COMPANIES THAT ARE CREATING

THESE NEW VEHICLES TO TAKE

ASTRONAUTS TO AND FROM THE

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION, AND

THEY'RE GETTING REALLY CLOSE TO

ACTUALLY PUTTING PEOPLE ON THOSE

VEHICLES.

BUT BEFORE THEY DO THAT, THEY

HAVE TO DO THESE UNCREWED FLIGHT

TESTS.

AND BOEING DID ITS UNCREWED

FLIGHT TEST IN DECEMBER, AND IT

DIDN'T REALLY GO ACCORDING TO

PLAN AT THE TIME.

A SOFTWARE GLITCH PREVENTED THE

CAPSULE FROM GETTING INTO THE

RIGHT ORBIT.

SO, IT DIDN'T ACTUALLY GO TO THE

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION LIKE

IT'S SUPPOSED TO.

BUT NOW, WE'RE LEARNING THAT

THERE WAS ACTUALLY A SECOND

SOFTWARE GLITCH THAT WAS

CORRECTED AT THE TIME.

BUT IF IT HADN'T BEEN CORRECTED,

IT COULD HAVE BEEN A

CATASTROPHIC FAILURE FOR THE

SPACECRAFT, AND IT COULD HAVE

MAYBE BEEN DESTROYED WHEN IT

RE-ENTERED EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE.

WE DON'T KNOW BECAUSE,

FORTUNATELY, THEY FIXED IT.

BUT IT IS KIND OF HIGHLIGHTING

THAT BOEING IS HAVING THESE--

THESE CODING PROBLEMS, AND NASA

IS REALLY DOING A DEEP

INVESTIGATION INTO THAT.

>> Sreenivasan: AS THE

STARLINER PROJECT IS HAPPENING,

YOU ALSO HAVE THE SPACE-X

PROJECT THAT'S KIND OF WORKING

IN PARALLEL, AND THAT IS

PLANNING ON PUTTING PEOPLE INTO

ORBIT.

>> RIGHT.

SO, INITIALLY, WHEN THEY CHOSE

THESE TWO PROVIDERS, IT WAS

SUPPOSED TO SPARK COMPETITION.

AND, MAN, SINCE THEN, THAT

COMPETITION HAS REALLY HEATED

UP.

THEY DEFINITELY ARE CONSTANTLY

GOING BACK AND FORTH WITH ONE

ANOTHER AND TRYING TO PROVE AND

BEAT OUT THE OTHER-- THE

PROVIDER.

SO FAR, I MEAN, SPACE-X HAS HAD

ITS OWN PROBLEMS.

LAST YEAR, ONE OF ITS "CREW

DRAGON" CAPSULES EXPLODED

DURING A TEST ON THE GROUND.

BUT SINCE THEN, THEY'VE KIND OF

OVERCOME THAT FAILURE.

THEY DID A REALLY CRUCIAL TEST

THIS JANUARY WHERE THEY TESTED

OUT THE EMERGENCY ABORT SYSTEM

ON THE "CREW DRAGON," WHICH IS

A REALLY CRUCIAL PIECE OF

HARDWARE THAT'S NEEDED TO SAVE

THE LIVES OF ASTRONAUTS IN CASE

THERE'S AN EMERGENCY DURING THE

LAUNCH.

AND THEY WERE ABLE TO PROVE THAT

SYSTEM SUPERBLY.

IT WENT, YOU KNOW, EXACTLY AS

PLANNED.

SO, NOW, WE'RE KIND OF IN THIS

WAITING PERIOD OF, OKAY, WHEN

WILL ASTRONAUTS BOARD THE "CREW

DRAGON"?

AND THAT COULD COME IN THE

SECOND QUARTER OF THIS YEAR.

THAT'S WHAT SPACE-X C.E.O.'S

ELON MUSK HAS SAID.

>> Sreenivasan: ALL RIGHT.

TWO OTHER THINGS-- IF THAT

WASN'T ENOUGH THIS WEEK, TWO

OTHER THINGS THAT WERE

HAPPENING.

ONE COMPANY HAD PUT UP, WHAT,

ANOTHER 30 MORE SATELLITES?

>> 34 SATELLITES.

>> Sreenivasan: 34 MORE

SATELLITES.

>> RIGHT.

>> Sreenivasan: IN ONE LAUNCH,

AND THEY'RE PLANNING TO PUT OUT

MORE AND MORE SATELLITES EVERY

COUPLE OF MONTHS TO DO WHAT?

>> SO, THIS IS THE YEAR OF

LAUNCHING LOTS AND LOTS OF

SATELLITES TO CREATE INTERNET

FROM SPACE.

SO, THE COMPANY IS ONEWEB, AND

THEY HAVE THIS VISION OF

LAUNCHING OVER 600 SATELLITES TO

CREATE THIS KIND OF GLOBAL

CONSTELLATION TO BEAM INTERNET

COVERAGE DOWN TO THE EARTH

BELOW.

AND THEY NEED THAT MANY

SATELLITES BECAUSE THEY'RE

PUTTING THEM INTO, LIKE, A LOW-

TO MID-EARTH ORBIT SO THAT THEY

CAN-- THE LATENCY BETWEEN THE

SIGNALS IS VERY LOW, BUT YOU'LL

NEED A LOT OF SATELLITES SO THAT

THEY CAN COVER THE ENTIRE GLOBE.

>> Sreenivasan: AND FINALLY,

WHAT COULD BE THE MOST

INTERESTING THING-- AND WE WILL

HAVE TO WAIT YEARS TO SEE IF

THIS PLAYS OUT-- BUT IS A LAUNCH

THAT'S HAPPENING TOMORROW, A

SOLAR ORBITER.

WE'RE SENDING A SATELLITE.

NOW, WE HAVE HAD-- SENT

SATELLITES BEFORE TO KIND OF

LOOK AT THE SUN.

WHAT'S THIS SATELLITE THAT WE'RE

SENDING TOMORROW GOING TO DO

THAT'S DIFFERENT?

>> SO, THIS SATELLITE IS GOING

TO GO TO A PLACE AND SEE A

VANTAGE OF THE SUN THAT WE JUST

REALLY HAVEN'T SEEN BEFORE.

IT'S THE SUN'S POLAR REGIONS.

SO, JUST LIKE ON EARTH, THE SUN

HAS POLES, TOO.

BUT, NORMALLY, WHEN WE SEND

SPACECRAFT TO GO STUDY THE SUN,

THEY ORBIT IN LINE WITH THE

PLANETS.

SO, THE PLANETS ALL ORBIT IN THE

SAME PLANE, LIKE A FLAT DISK.

BUT GETTING TO THE POLES IS

REALLY HARD BECAUSE THEY'RE, YOU

KNOW, AT AN ANGLE.

SO, THIS-- THIS PARTICULAR

SPACECRAFT IS GOING TO GET IN

THE-- IN THAT ANGULAR ORBIT AND

REALLY GET THE FIRST UPCLOSE

LOOK OF THE POLES THAT WE'VE

EVER SEEN ON THE SUN.

>> Sreenivasan: LOREN GRUSH

FROM "THE VERGE," THANKS SO MUCH

FOR JOINING US.

>> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.