Boeing’s advancement towards space exploration has recently experienced a significant obstacle, a predicament that has expanded over the past few years with its Starliner module’s struggle to achieve lift-off. This situation is amplified by the continual rapid progress of its competitor, SpaceX.
NASA has elected to utilize SpaceX’s services to facilitate the return of two astronauts that have been positioned at the International Space Station since the beginning of June. The astronauts found themselves in a fix when their Boeing spacecraft encountered multiple issues mid-flight, leading NASA to this resolution.
Two astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, originally journeyed to space orbiting aboard the Boeing Starliner spacecraft. The duo will now disembark back to Earth onboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon module. This decision concludes several months of conjecture within NASA about the method and timeline of their secure return. Initially, the mission span was slated for approximately eight days.
The difficulties with the Starliner program have been a blow to Boeing’s spatial ventures, and its prolonged efforts to launch the capsule while keeping apace of SpaceX’s strides have proven challenging.
At the time of Wilmore and Williams’ departure in June, the Starliner initiative had already exceeded its initial expenditure by above $1.5 billion. Indeed, it was significantly lagging in its timeline as well.
Senior NASA representatives, including chief Bill Nelson, assembled in Houston last Saturday to carry out an inspection based on test outcomes, both in orbit and on the ground. Following this, a media briefing was held at NASA’s Johnson Space Center where the choice to opt for SpaceX was made known.
The doubts surrounding the retrieval of the astronauts have now been resolved. However, their Earth-bound journey is not imminent. Wilmore and Williams will remain stationed at the ISS for approximately six additional months before heading home in February.
NASA has plans to soften the situation by clearing a couple of seats on the forthcoming SpaceX launch, known as Crew-9. This launch will convey a fresh crew rotation all set to board the space station. Transportation of just two astronauts out of the supposed four will leave empty seats that can be occupied by Wilmore and Williams on their February homeward journey.
The Crew-9 flight, with its modified passenger count, is being prepared for launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on the 24th of this September.
As for the ill-fated Starliner module, plans indicate it will be sent on an uncrewed voyage back to Earth, in compliance with NASA’s directives.
Despite NASA’s wavering decisions recently, Boeing’s public statements appeared confident. Asserting that both in-orbit and ground tests showed the Starliner module could safely house the astronauts during the return journey.
Last month has seen a lack of Boeing officials at NASA-hosted news briefings concerning the Starliner mission. Information updates were accessible via Boeing’s official website, but no updates have been issued since early August. Boeing’s last communique stated its unwavering confidence in Starliner’s ability to conduct a safe return journey with the crew present.
The two astronauts initially arrived at the space station onboard the Starliner on the 6th of June. As they inched closer to the orbiting body, the malfunction of five Starliner thrusters caused an hour’s delay in the docking process. Another unforeseen hiccup was the detection of helium leaking from the capsule’s propulsion system — an issue identified pre-launch that had escalated in-flight.
Over the weeks, a collaboration of NASA and Boeing engineers closely monitored the issues using a test engine reserved for future Starliner flights and conducted two ‘hot fire tests’ in space. These tests included firing the space module’s thrusters in short intervals while it remained stationed at the space station.
The day prior, on June 5, Wilmore and Williams had been launched to the ISS aboard the Starliner, marking its first manned mission. This voyage which was initially aimed to be just over a week was a significant trial for Boeing. The successful completion was meant to be an essential prerequisite for NASA certification of regular astronaut transportation to and from the ISS aboard the Starliner. With the turn of events, it remains to be seen how Boeing progresses with the certification procedure.