Musk mocks NASA chief's climbing background amid lunar lander spat
Elon Musk just took a swipe at Sean Duffy, NASA's acting chief, after Duffy called out SpaceX for falling behind on its $2.9 billion Artemis III lunar lander contract.
Duffy even hinted he might look at other companies like Blue Origin if things don't speed up.
Musk fired back on X (formerly Twitter), poking fun at Duffy's background and asking, "Should someone whose biggest claim to fame is climbing trees be running America's space program?"
Duffy sets deadline for SpaceX to speed up Artemis III plan
Duffy, who's also the US Transportation Secretary, spoke on CNBC about SpaceX's delays and set an October 29 deadline for them to present a faster plan.
His push comes as NASA tries to pick up the pace, especially with China aiming to send humans to the Moon by 2030.
The Artemis III mission, now scheduled for mid-2027 to the lunar South Pole, is under extra pressure.
Musk's jab underscores ongoing tensions in space race
Besides his government roles, Duffy is known for being a competitive speed climber—a detail Musk didn't hesitate to mock online.
The jab highlights ongoing tensions as NASA juggles big ambitions and tight deadlines for America's next Moon landing.