Tag: Starliner

Helium Leak Presents No Safety Threat to Boeing’s Starliner Capsule According to NASA

CBS News reports that engineers are confident the leak will not worsen in flight, and even if it does, the Starliner can safely launch June 1. The article cites Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, who said that “even if a suspect shirt-button-size rubber seal in the plumbing leading to one specific thruster failed completely in flight — resulting in a leak rate 100 times worse than what’s been observed to date — the Starliner could still fly safely.”
Full Story (CBS News)

Boeing to Launch First Crewed Test Flight Tonight

The Washington Post reports, “A decade after NASA awarded Boeing a contract to fly astronauts to the ISS, Boeing will finally attempt to fly its Starliner spacecraft with people onboard. If all goes to plan, at 10:34 p.m. on Monday, the company is set to fly a pair of veteran astronauts, Sunita Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore, on a mission that will be one of the most significant tests for Boeing’s space division — and for NASA — in years.”
Full Story (Washington Post)

Boeing Starliner Crewed Test Flight Passes Critical Review

Space News reports, “The first crewed flight of Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft is a step closer to launch after completing a major pre-launch review April 25. NASA announced at an April 25 briefing that, at the completion of the two-day Flight Test Readiness Review, officials approved plans to proceed with the Crew Flight Test (CFT) mission, with a launch scheduled for 10:34 p.m. Eastern May 6 from Cape Canaveral’s Space Launch Complex (SLC) 41.”
Full Story (Space News)

Boeing Starliner’s Future Is Unclear After Returning Without Astronauts

The New York Times reports that Boeing’s Starliner “has finally come home, but the two NASA astronauts who traveled in it to the International Space Station in June remain in orbit. Because of problems with Starliner’s propulsion system during its approach to the space station in June, NASA officials decided not to put the astronauts, Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore, on Starliner for the return trip. They will spend an additional five months on the space station as part of the crew before coming back to Earth around February in a spacecraft built and managed by SpaceX.”
Full Story (New York Times – Subscription Publication)
Full Story (NYT via Yahoo News)

Uncrewed Boeing Starliner Set to Depart Space Station Friday Night

The New York Times reports, “Leaving behind the two NASA astronauts it took to the International Space Station three months ago, Boeing’s troubled Starliner spacecraft is set to begin its return to Earth on Friday evening. Six hours after it undocks from the station, it is to parachute to a landing at the White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico. If bad weather or technical issues cause a delay, Starliner’s return could happen on Sept. 10, Sept. 14 or Sept. 18.”
Full Story (New York Times)

Wilmore Reports Strange Noise Coming from Starliner Spacecraft

Ars Technica reports, “On Saturday NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore noticed some strange noises emanating from a speaker inside the Starliner spacecraft. ‘I’ve got a question about Starliner,’ Wilmore radioed down to Mission Control at Johnson Space Center in Houston. ‘There’s a strange noise coming through the speaker… I don’t know what’s making it.’ Wilmore said he was not sure if there was some oddity in the connection between the station and the spacecraft causing the noise, or something else. He asked the flight controllers in Houston to see if they could listen to the audio inside the spacecraft. A few minutes later, Mission Control radioed back that they were linked via ‘hardline’ to listen to audio inside Starliner, which has now been docked to the International Space Station for nearly three months.”
Full Story (Ars Technica)

NASA Confirms Boeing Starliner Astronauts Will Return Home on SpaceX Dragon in 2025

SPACE reports that NASA decided Saturday (Aug. 24) to return its two Boeing Starliner astronauts to Earth in February 2025. Their Starliner capsule will come back empty over thruster concerns. “NASA and Boeing jointly decided that Williams and Wilmore will not head back to Earth aboard the same Starliner capsule that brought them to the ISS. Rather, they will climb aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule for their descent to our planet, a vessel dedicated to the Crew-9 mission set to launch in September that will be modified to accommodate the Starliner astronauts.”
Full Story (SPACE)

NASA Postpones Return of Boeing Starliner Crew Until March

The Washington Post reports, “The two Boeing Starliner astronauts kept unexpectedly on the International Space Station since June have had their stay extended yet again because the next crew will arrive later than originally anticipated, NASA said this week. Barry ‘Butch’ Wilmore and Sunita Williams were previously expected to return in February after spending several months longer in orbit than planned.”
Full Story (Washington Post)

Starliner Crew May Return Home with SpaceX in 2025

The New York Times reports that for weeks, NASA has downplayed problems experienced by Starliner, but on Wednesday, NASA officials admitted that the issues might be more serious than first thought and that the astronauts might not return on the Boeing vehicle. “The agency is exploring a backup option for the astronauts, Suni Wiliams and Butch Wilmore, to instead hitch a ride back to Earth on a spacecraft built by Boeing’s competitor SpaceX. The astronauts’ stay in orbit, which was to be as short as eight days, could be extended into next year.”
Full Story (New York Times)

NASA Chief to Make Final Call On When Starliner Crew Returns Home

Ars Technica reports, “NASA on Tuesday confirmed that it is delaying the launch of its next astronaut mission to the International Space Station, Crew 9, until at least September 24. This is a significant slip from the previous date of August 18. The space agency said the delay was necessary for ‘operational flexibility’ as it continues to deliberate on the viability of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. In the release, NASA stated, ‘This adjustment allows more time for mission managers to finalize return planning for the agency’s Boeing Crew Flight Test currently docked to the orbiting laboratory.’”
Full Story (Ars Technica)

Boeing Closer to Understanding Thruster Failures After Latest Testing

AP News reports, “Boeing is closer to understanding what went wrong with its astronaut capsule in orbit, now that testing is complete on a spare thruster here on Earth. … Officials said Thursday there’s still no return date for astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams. Engineers will first disassemble the thruster that was test-fired in New Mexico over the past couple of weeks. Then they’ll analyze the data before clearing Starliner for the trip home.”
Full story (AP News)

NASA Astronauts Are Sure That Boeing’s Starliner Will Get Them Home

The Washington Post reports, “The two NASA astronauts who flew in Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft to the International Space Station last month said Wednesday that they have no concerns the capsule will be able to fly them home safely, even as their return has been postponed indefinitely while NASA and Boeing struggle to determine what caused a series of thruster failures and helium leaks.”
Full Story (The Washington Post)

NASA’s NEOWISE Spacecraft Set to Retire at End of Month

Flying Magazine reports that NASA’s Near-Earth Object (NEO) Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or NEOWISE, “has taken millions of infrared measurements and studied tens of thousands of asteroids, comets, stars, galaxies, and other objects.” In late 2024 or early 2025, the spacecraft “is expected to come home in pieces following the conclusion of its second mission later this month.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)

NASA Orders More Starliner Tests as Crew Remains in Space

Ars Technica reports, “NASA and Boeing officials pushed back Friday on headlines that the commercial Starliner crew capsule is stranded at the International Space Station but said they need more time to analyze data before formally clearing the spacecraft for undocking and reentry. Two NASA astronauts, Butch Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams will spend at least a few more weeks on the space station as engineers on the ground conduct thruster tests to better understand issues with the Starliner propulsion system in orbit.”
Full Story (Ars Technica)

Astronauts Remain at ISS as Engineers Examine Issues with Starliner’s Propulsion System

The Washington Post reports, “Before Boeing’s first flight with humans on its Starliner spacecraft earlier this month, the company and NASA said repeatedly that a rigorous testing program following years of delays and costly setbacks meant it was finally ready to fly astronauts. Instead of coming home after about eight days, the spacecraft remains docked to the station, its return delayed indefinitely while teams continue to troubleshoot a series of problems in the capsule’s propulsion system.”
Full Story (The Washington Post – Subscription Publication)