The much awaited Boeing's Starliner spacecraft is scheduled to return to Earth today, September 7. It has already departed from the International Space Station and is expected to touch down on Earth in New Mexico after a six-hour journey.
“She’s on her way home,” astronaut Sunita Williams had radioed to Mission Control from inside the International Space Station(ISS), as the spacecraft returned to Earth without her, reported the Associated Press.
With astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore on board, the spacecraft launched on June 5, 2024 from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. It was initially planned as an eight-day test flight. However, due to helium leaks and thruster malfunctions, the mission’s duration was extended.
The Starliner mission was pivotal for Boeing, designed to demonstrate the commercial space capsule's ability to transport crews to the International Space Station (ISS).
The Starliner spacecraft is expected to land at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico on Saturday, September 7. The touchdown will take place around 12:30 am Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) on Saturday. That's 9:30 am as per the Indian Standard Time (IST).
The departure can be viewed live on NASA’s official YouTube channel. Tap here to watch.
Boeing Space also shared about the Starliner's journey on its X account.
Due to technical issues with the spacecraft's reaction control thrusters and episodes of helium leak, NASA and Boeing opted for an uncrewed return for safety reasons.
NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore will remain on the ISS and return to Earth in February 2025 aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft as part of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission.
On September 4, 2024, Nasa had held a press conference on Boeing’s crew flight test pre-departure, focusing on the return of the Starliner spacecraft and its implications for the mission and the ISS.
Key aspects including the retrieval of cargo such as reusable oxygen tanks and potential risks during re-entry, were discussed. NASA and Boeing engineers assured that the spacecraft’s thrusters had undergone thorough testing, with 27 out of 28 of them functioning correctly.
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