Tag: Starliner

Boeing’s Starliner on Track to Launch in April

SPACE reported that The Boeing Company and NASA officials have announced that the Starliner’s first crewed flight will launch in April. The next major milestone “for Starliner’s progress will be loading propellant into the vehicle’s service module.” Successful propellant loading will begin a 60-day launch window in order to prevent valve corrosion on the spacecraft’s propulsion system.
Full Story (SPACE)

Astra’s NASA Mission Fails With Loss of Satellites

Reuters reported that Astra Space’s mission to send “tiny storm-monitoring NASA satellites to orbit” failed after a second-stage booster engine shut down 10 minutes after liftoff. The rocket was carrying two satellites designed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Lincoln Laboratory to “measure moisture and precipitation in tropical storm systems,” which were set to be the first batch of a six-satellite constellation managed by NASA. NASA Science Mission Directorate Associate Administrator Thomas Zurbuchen tweeted that the mission “offered a great opportunity for new science and launch capabilities.”
More Info (Reuters)
 
 
 

 

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Astra rocket launches on mission to deliver NASA TROPICS satellites
(VideoFromSpace via YouTube)

Starliner Returns to White Sands Missile Range

The Washington Post reports that the Boeing Company’s Starliner capsule undocked from the International Space Station Wednesday and successfully returned to Earth, completing a six-day mission.  The uncrewed capsule “touched down as scheduled at 6:49 p.m. Eastern time at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico under a trio of parachutes.”  Starliner’s return marked the final step of a vital test for Boeing and NASA, “which required the aerospace company to prove it could safely fly the vehicle to the station and back autonomously before allowing it to fly astronauts.”
Full Story (Washington Post)
 
 
 

 

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Starliner’s Orbital Flight Test-2 Landing (Boeing via YouTube)


Starliner Closes Hatch; Astronauts Prepare Test Vehicle for Return to Earth Wednesday

The Orlando (FL) Sentinel reports that The Boeing Company’s Starliner successfully docked with the ISS on Friday, and its hatch opened on Saturday. “Since then the crew has removed 500 pounds of cargo sent up, and then loaded it up again with 600 more pounds for the return to Earth. That includes three Nitrogen Oxygen Recharge System tanks, essential for supplying breathable air on station. They will be refurbished planetside for a future return to the station.”
Full Story (Orlando Sentinel – subscription publication);
More Info (SciTech Daily)

 

 
 
 

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Boeing Starliner’s Hatch Closes in Preparation for Undocking from ISS
(Boeing via YouTube)

Starliner’s Docking at ISS Was Slightly Delayed

CNN reports that The Boeing Company’s Starliner spacecraft docked with the ISS “Friday night at 8:28 p.m. ET.” Starliner’s docking “occurred about an hour later than expected as ground crews worked through a few issues, including a software issue that skewed graphics, sort of like a misaligned GPS map.” The Starliner’s pop-out docking ring malfunctioned on its first docking attempt.
Full Story (CNN)

AIAA Statement on Successful Orbital Flight Test-2 (OFT-2) Mission

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 21, 2022 – Reston, Va. –The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Executive Director Dan Dumbacher made the following statement:

“Congratulations to the NASA and Boeing team on the successful Orbital Flight Test-2 (OFT-2) mission, including the beautiful launch of the Starliner spacecraft atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. We applaud their combined efforts to deliver this uncrewed cargo mission to the International Space Station (ISS).

The OFT-2 mission is a major step on the path to further realize the potential of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program to safely and reliably fly humans to and from low Earth orbit (LEO). We are encouraged to see human spaceflight capability to the ISS from the United States increase, as the aerospace industry continues opening access to space for more people as part of building the space economy.

New spacecraft programs like Starliner rely on a highly qualified team of partners. We recognize the countless AIAA members involved in all aspects of the supply chain in this endeavor, including those who have helped design, build, and test this new spacecraft. We salute everyone involved for their important contributions to this much needed new capability.”

 

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Boeing Starliner Launches to the International Space Station on Atlas V (Boeing via YouTube)



Media Contact: Rebecca B. Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cellAbout AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, or follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.

Boeing Starliner Launches on Test Flight to ISS

Space.com reports Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft successfully launched Thursday at 6:54 p.m. ET from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station “kicking off the crucial Orbital Flight Test (OFT-2).”  Fifteen minutes after launch, Starliner separated from the ULA Atlas V’s upper stage, and “16 minutes later, the capsule aced its 45-second-long orbital insertion burn.”  OFT-2, an uncrewed mission to the ISS, is designed to demonstrate Starliner’s readiness to carry astronauts on behalf of NASA.
Full Story (Space.com)
 
 
 

 

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Boeing Starliner OFT-2 Launch

NASA: Boeing Starliner Ready for Uncrewed Launch Thursday

Reuters reports, “NASA astronauts and officials on Wednesday said” The Boeing Company’s “Starliner space capsule is ready for its uncrewed launch this week to the International Space Station.” The launch is scheduled for “6:54 p.m. EDT (2254 GMT) on Thursday at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.” The mission is to “attempt to dock to the space station on Friday and spend four to five days attached to the orbital outpost before returning to Earth.”
Full Story (Reuters)

Weather Expected to be Good for Launches Scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday

The Orlando Sentinel reports, “Space Coast weather looks to be amenable” for “a Wednesday morning launch from SpaceX and a Thursday evening liftoff from” The Boeing Company. On Wednesday, there “is another Starlink mission from SpaceX launching from Kennedy Space Center’s Pad 39-A,” and “on Thursday evening, Boeing and NASA look to send up the CST-100 Starliner spacecraft atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex-41.”
Full Story (Orlando Sentinel)