Elon Musk Clashes with Astronaut Over Space Station Controversy

Elon Musk has once again found himself in a heated public feud, this time with Danish astronaut Andreas Mogensen, after making a bold—and inaccurate—claim about two astronauts currently stationed aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

The SpaceX CEO’s latest controversy unfolded after he falsely stated in an interview with Fox News that astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams had been abandoned in space due to “political reasons.”

Mogensen, a respected engineer who piloted SpaceX’s Crew-7 mission to the ISS in 2023, quickly called out Musk’s claim on social media, writing:

“What a lie. And from someone who complains about lack of honesty from the mainstream media.”

Rather than back down or clarify his statement, Musk reacted with anger and insults, launching a tirade against Mogensen.

“You are fully retarded,” Musk wrote. “SpaceX could have brought them back several months ago. I OFFERED THIS DIRECTLY to the Biden administration and they refused. Return WAS pushed back for political reasons. Idiot.”

Mogensen didn’t let Musk’s response slide, countering with the actual facts:

“You know as well as I do that Butch and Suni are returning with Crew-9, as has been the plan since last September. Even now, you are not sending up a rescue ship to bring them home. They are returning on the Dragon capsule that has been on ISS since last September.”

Musk’s claim that the two astronauts were “stranded” in space doesn’t align with reality. Wilmore and Williams originally arrived at the ISS over six months ago as part of Boeing’s Starliner test mission.

Their return was delayed not due to politics, but because of technical issues with Starliner that made their scheduled 10-day return mission unsafe.

Rather than risk the astronauts’ safety, NASA opted to have them return on the Crew-9 mission in March, which was always part of the contingency plan. Extended stays on the ISS are not unusual—astronaut Frank Rubio spent over a year on the station between 2022 and 2023 after his Soyuz spacecraft suffered damage, delaying his return by over six months.

Wilmore and Williams themselves have dismissed any suggestion that they have been abandoned, with Wilmore telling CNN’s Anderson Cooper:

“We don’t feel abandoned, we don’t feel stuck, we don’t feel stranded.”

Williams added that delays in testing new spacecraft are expected:

“We knew that we would probably find some things (wrong with Starliner) and we found some stuff, and so that was not a surprise.”

Musk’s false claim has drawn criticism not just from astronauts but also from NASA officials, who have repeatedly stated that politics played no role in the return timeline. Former NASA Administrator Bill Nelson was clear in August:

“Unequivocally, politics has not played any part in [the] decision to delay Williams and Wilmore’s departure from the ISS.”

NASA even released a report in February confirming that returning the astronauts via Starliner would have exponentially increased risks to their safety.

Despite this, Musk has continued to weaponize the situation for political purposes, using it as a talking point against the Biden administration. In January, he wrote on X:

“The @POTUS has asked @SpaceX to bring home the 2 astronauts stranded on the @Space_Station as soon as possible. We will do so. Terrible that the Biden administration left them there so long.”

Beyond the false narrative about the ISS, Musk’s recent statements have raised concerns about his own conflicts of interest—particularly regarding NASA contracts. In July, NASA awarded SpaceX nearly $1 billion to handle the decommissioning and return of the ISS by 2030.

Now, Musk is pushing to accelerate that timeline, writing on X that the ISS should be deorbited by 2027 instead of 2030. He framed his reasoning in grandiose terms:

“It is time to begin preparations for deorbiting the @Space_Station. It has served its purpose. There is very little incremental utility. Let’s go to Mars.”

Musk also suggested that the final decision rests with the President, but claimed his personal recommendation is to begin decommissioning as soon as possible.

Musk’s personal and business interests in the space industry are clear—his company stands to gain financially from NASA contracts, yet he continues to frame himself as an outsider battling government inefficiency.

His latest outburst, coupled with false accusations about the Biden administration, appears to be yet another example of political posturing aimed at strengthening his influence over NASA’s operations.

At the heart of it all, however, is the reality of space exploration—delays and technical issues are normal, and NASA’s primary goal is ensuring astronaut safety, not bending to political narratives.

Musk may have the loudest voice in the room, but when it comes to actual spaceflight, it’s astronauts like Mogensen, Wilmore, and Williams who truly understand the stakes.