Hear
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (POTfor its acronym in English) launched on Wednesday, June 5 a Historic mission with first crewed flight test aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, directed towards the International Space Station. Although it was supposed to last a week, some Technical problems in the capsule have delayed the return of astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to Earth.
At 10:52 a.m. (EDT) on Wednesday, June 5, Wilmore and Williams took off from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, aboard a ULA Atlas V rocket (United Launch Alliance). This flight is part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, intended to validate the transportation system, launch platform, rocket and spacecraftin addition to testing in-orbit operations capabilities prior to certification for rotating missions to the orbital laboratory.
Despite the successful takeoff, The Boeing capsule faced several technical problems during its journey. Specifically, it was reported helium leaks and thruster failuresforcing government agency teams to extend the stay of astronauts in space until after June 25.
This decision was made to allow engineers to investigate and resolve the problems before attempting to return to Earth, as explained by NASA in an official statement. Furthermore, they assured that, if necessary, The capsule can remain in the orbital laboratory for up to 45 days inclusive.
Wilmore and Williams docked the Starliner spacecraft to the space station’s forward port on June 6.. Since then, they have worked on testing spacecraft systems and performing various tasks aboard the orbital laboratory. These astronauts are now in a provisional situation, while They wait for teams on the ground to resolve the capsule’s technical problems.
“Two bold NASA astronauts are on their way in this historic first test flight of a new spacecraft“, said Bill Nelson, administrator of the government agency, in an official statement at the beginning of the mission. “We are going to take it one step at a time by testing Starliner and the Stay alert until Butch and Suni land safely on Earth”he added.
Despite initial plans, NASA and Boeing teams now aim to undock the Starliner spacecraft from the space station no earlier than 10:10 p.m. (EDT) on Tuesday, June 25. Astronauts are expected to land around 4:51 a.m. (EDT) on Wednesday, June 26 at White Sands Spaceport in New Mexico.
Steve Stichmanager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, emphasized in a teleconference that There is no reason to believe that Starliner will not be able to bring astronauts back to Earth.
After undocking and deorbitation, Boeing shuttle will descend by parachute to land in the White Sands desert terrain. Air bags placed in the bottom of the Starliner will soften the impact of landing. This will be a significant milestone, marking the first time a US capsule has landed on land with astronauts on board. A team of specialists will be present to recover the crew shortly after landing.
THE NATION
