New delay, and it is already the third in almost three weeks, of the return of the Starliner ship to Earth.
The Boeing space capsule, which has been docked at the International Space Station since June 6, will now begin its return maneuver no earlier than July 2, as reported by NASA.
Since the 14th, the initially scheduled date, the agency has been postponing the return of the vehicle every few days, affected by several helium leaks and problems with the propellants which, although theoretically should not compromise the safety of the astronauts ‘Butch’ Wilmore and ‘Suni’ Williams –who traveled on board to manually test the ship and will also have to return– must be supervised and attempted to be corrected before giving the green light to re-entry.
“We are taking our time and following the standard process of our mission management team,” he said. Steve Stitch, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, in an update last Friday night. “We are letting data drive our decision-making regarding the management of small helium system leaks and the performance of the thrusters that we observe during rendezvous and docking.” [con la EEI]», he added.
The mission, called Crew Flight Test (Manned Flight Mission), also foresees at least one spacewalk, although various problems in the spacesuits are causing problems in carrying it out.
Call to tranquility
However, Stich emphasizes that the delays should not be cause for alarm: «Starliner is performing well in orbit while docked with the space station. We are strategically using the extra time to clear the way for some critical station activities while we complete preparation for ‘Butch’ and ‘Suni”s return on Starliner and gain valuable information on system upgrades we will want to make for subsequent missions. to certification.
The Starliner, which until its launch had suffered years of delays and cost overruns, has its origins in an agreement signed in 2014 between Boeing and NASA for the multinational to manufacture a fleet of vehicles that would allow cargo and astronauts to be transported to the ISS – something that SpaceX has already been doing since 2020. In the best case scenario, it would obtain permission to start operating from 2025, if the test now underway is successful. It is not clear whether helium leaks and problems suffered in the propellants will postpone this entry into service or not.
For its part, NASA emphasizes that the crew “has many supplies in orbit,” so they can remain on the Station. until mid-August.
