In a move that is certain to satisfy his former adviser, Elon Musk, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order relaxing restrictions for the commercial space industry, including doing away with some environmental studies.
An environmental organization called the executive order “reckless” despite claiming it sought to “substantially” increase the frequency of space launches in the US.
Trump has emphasized a number of space initiatives, including sending people to the Moon and Mars, since he returned to the White House in January.
Musk’s private company SpaceX plans to use its enormous Starship rocket to transport the missions to the Moon and Mars.
But Starship has seen a string of failures, including a spectacular explosion in June during its most recent scheduled test.
