Elon Musk’s past continues to haunt him as NASA has said that they will be reviewing worker safety practices at SpaceX after the company’s founder was seen smoking weed on the Joe Rogan’s Podcast last September. NASA has said that the audit will be conducted for both of its civilian contractors, SpaceX and Boeing. Both companies are developing spacecraft for NASA that would be taking astronauts into space and hence, the space agency has initiated an audit into both companies.
Elon Musk appeared on the Joe Rogan podcast last September and was seen smoking weed, sparking all sorts of headlines. It didn’t help that Tesla, at the time, was in the middle of its own problems with delays in product and questions about its profitability. Then there was also the tweet where he declared he would be taking the company private, thanks to a Saudi backer. The Securities and Exchange Commission got involved right after, making thins harder for Musk.
While recreational use of Marijuana is considered illegal in most states, California, where the Joe Rogan Podcast is recorded, has legalized recreational use of the medicinal herb. However, it is still an illegal act at a federal level and hence government agencies have instated a drug-free workplace regulation. “NASA will be conducting a cultural assessment study in coordination with our commercial partners to ensure the companies are meeting NASA’s requirements for workplace safety, including the adherence to a drug-free environment,” a NASA spokesperson said in a statement to The Verge. “We fully expect our commercial partners to meet all workplace safety requirements in the execution of our missions and the services they provide the American people. As always, NASA will ensure they do so.” In a statement to the Washington Post, NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine said “As an agency, we’re not just leading ourselves, but our contractors as well. We need to show the American public that when we put an astronaut on a rocket, they’ll be safe.” Bridenstine also argued that a company’s “culture and leadership start at the top.”
At the moment, it is unclear whether this inquiry will cause any delays in the launch schedule of both companies’ first manned space vehicles, which is scheduled for 2019.