NASA PICKS ASTRONAUT CREW SHIP DESIGNS (STA BREAKING NEWS and ARCHIVES)

by STANews , Wednesday, September 17, 2014, 08:32

The US space agency Nasa has picked the companies it hopes can take the country's astronauts back into space.

It is giving up to $6.2bn to the Boeing and SpaceX firms, to help them finish the development of new crew capsules.

Since the space shuttles were retired in 2011, the Americans have relied on Russia and its Soyuz vehicles to get to the International Space Station.

Boeing and SpaceX should have their seven-person crew ships ready to take over the role by late 2017.

Disagreements over Moscow's actions in Ukraine have made the current Soyuz arrangement increasingly unpalatable for Washington.

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http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-29228900