2024 | NASA Says No Return Date Yet For Astronauts And Troubled Boeing Capsule At Space Station

Officials announced Thursday that, more than a month later, two NASA astronauts would remain at the International Space Station until engineers complete work on faults with their Boeing capsule.

Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams were intended to visit the orbiting lab for a week and return in mid-June, but thruster issues and helium leaks on Boeing’s new Starliner capsule forced NASA and Boeing to extend their stay.

NASA | AP Image

NASA Says No Return Date Yet For Astronauts And Troubled Boeing Capsule At Space Station

The commercial crew program manager, Steve Stich, stated that mission managers are still waiting to declare a return date. He stated that the goal is to bring Wilmore and Williams back aboard the Starliner.

“We’ll come home when we’re ready,” Stich stated.

Stich stated that backup plans are being reviewed. SpaceX’s Dragon capsule is another option for transporting NASA astronauts to and from the space station.

“NASA always has contingency options,” he told me.

Engineers finished testing a spare thruster in the New Mexico desert last week and plan to disassemble it to determine what went wrong before the Starliner docks. Five rockets failed when the spacecraft approached the station on June 6, one day after launch. Four have since been reactivated.

Deteriorating seals are to blame for the helium leaks and thruster troubles, which are unrelated issues, although further investigation is required. Boeing’s Mark Nappi stated that the crew will test-fire the capsule’s thrusters this weekend while docked to the space station to acquire additional data.

NASA Says No Return Date Yet For Astronauts And Troubled Boeing Capsule At Space Station

Each of the 28 maneuvering thrusters may be held in one hand and weighs 2 pounds (1 kilogram). The capsule is also built with larger engines to drop out of orbit at the end of the mission. These are part of a piece that is destroyed before landing, leaving nothing to study for future trips.

After the space shuttles were retired, they engaged commercial businesses to transport astronauts to the space station, paying Boeing and SpaceX billions of dollars.

SOURCE | AP