NASA Officially Classifies Boeing Starliner Failure As A Maximum-Level Type A Mishap

Imagine NASA has a toy rocket called Starliner, built by a company called Boeing.

• It was supposed to take astronauts to their space house, the ISS.
• But something went wrong! The thrusters, which are like the rocket's brakes and steering wheel, didn't work properly.

NASA said this was a "Type A Mishap". That's NASA's way of saying "Uh oh, BIG problem!" It means:

• Lots and lots of money was wasted (more than $2 million!).
• The rocket almost crashed, or they almost lost control of it.

Think of it like this: if you were driving your toy car, and the steering wheel broke, and you almost crashed into your house, that would be a "Type A Mishap" for your toy car!

Why did it happen?

• NASA really wanted a second rocket company besides SpaceX.
• So they didn't check Boeing's work very carefully.
• Boeing didn't check the work of the companies they hired either!
• Plus, some grown-ups at NASA were arguing and not being nice to each other.

So now NASA is going to be much more careful to check everything before letting Starliner fly again. They want to make sure it's safe for the astronauts! They still don't know exactly why the thrusters broke.