Boeing Space’s Starliner spacecraft delivered its first-ever crew to the International Space Station (ISS) in early June in a mission that was supposed to last about eight days.
But as it approached the ISS on June 6, problems emerged with some of the Starliner’s thrusters. The thrusters are important as they control the orientation of the spacecraft and will therefore play a crucial role in guiding the Starliner toward its reentry into Earth’s atmosphere when the vehicle finally sets off for home.
So concerned has NASA been about the functionality of the thrusters that it decided to extend the mission while it carried out investigative work into what happened, and to see if anything needs to be done — or can be done — to correct the issue.
It’s meant that the two Starliner crew members — NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore — have had their mission extended until further notice.
NASA is getting ready to offer another update on the mission — and possibly a date for the Starliner’s homecoming — at 11:30 a.m. ET on Thursday, July 25. Folks interested in listening in can do so via the agency’s website.
Participating in the media event will be Steve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, and Mark Nappi, vice president and program manager of Boeing’s Commercial Crew Program.
As part of efforts to better understand the thruster issue, NASA and Boeing recently completed ground hot fire testing of a Starliner reaction control system thruster at White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico.
“The test series involved firing the engine through similar in-flight conditions the spacecraft experienced during its approach to the space station, as well as various stress-case firings for what is expected during Starliner’s undocking and the deorbit burn that will position the spacecraft for a landing in the southwestern U.S.,” NASA said on its website. “Teams are analyzing the data from these tests, and leadership plans to discuss initial findings during the call.”
The Starliner mission is an end-to-end test of the spacecraft’s systems. Once it gets back to Earth, NASA will evaluate the mission to see if it can begin the process of certifying Starliner for rotational flights to and from the space station, giving it another option for crewed missions alongside SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft.