Commentary
A series of problems with Boeing’s new CST-100 Starliner spacecraft has delayed its return from the International Space Station.
Two NASA-trained astronauts testing Boeing’s new CST-100 Starliner spacecraft experienced technical problems with the spacecraft, forcing them to remain aboard the International Space Station (ISS), which orbits Earth about 400 kilometers (250 miles).
Astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore were originally scheduled to return to Earth on June 13 after the Boeing Starliner spacecraft began its first manned flight on June 5 from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. However, Starliner has been plagued with problems even before its launch on June 5. The previous launch was canceled on June 1, just before liftoff, due to performance issues with the ground control computer.
During its 25-hour flight to the International Space Station, the spacecraft experienced several helium leaks and thruster failures. Then, when Starliner arrived on June 6 and attempted to dock with the ISS, four more of its 28 thrusters failed, delaying the spacecraft’s arrival.
A Boeing spokesman said four of the five previously failed thrusters are now working properly. “That means that out of 27 thrusters, only one is currently offline, and the return mission is OK,” the spokesman added.
Who are the two astronauts trapped in space?
Sunita “Suni” Williams is an American astronaut and U.S. Navy officer who joined NASA in 1998. Williams’ first flight to the ISS was in December 2006, when she was a flight engineer, servicing the power-generating solar panels of the Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-116). In May 2012, her second mission as a flight engineer was the ISS Expedition 32 to test a new microsatellite deployment system. After completing other missions, Williams was selected as one of the first astronauts to train for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program in 2015.
Williams has spent a total of 322 days in space and is best known for her missions aboard the International Space Station (ISS), where she set the record for the longest spaceflight by a woman (195 days) and also holds the record for the most spacewalks outside a spacecraft by a female astronaut, with seven. This record was broken in 2017 by Peggy Whitson, who has completed 10 spacewalks to date.
Williams is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Legion of Merit, Navy Commendation Medal, Navy-Marine Corps Achievement Medal and Humanitarian Service Medal.
Barry “Batch” Wilmore delivered parts to the ISS aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis in November 2009, and served as the ISS commander from November 2014 to March 2015.
Wilmore’s first spaceflight was in November 2009 as part of a mission to deliver spare parts to the ISS aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis (STS-129). In May 2014, Wilmore served as flight engineer for Expedition 41, a mission to study the effects of weightlessness on the human body and plant growth. In 2014, he also served as commander for Expedition 42, a mission to study the effects of space on immune cells and to monitor contamination of Earth’s atmosphere.
Wilmore has also received numerous awards, including the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Honor for Domestic Violence and the NASA Space Flight Medal.
![International Space Station](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/GettyImages-2156677765-1719487269.jpg?w=770&resize=770%2C842)
![International Space Station](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/GettyImages-2156677765-1719487269.jpg?w=770&resize=770%2C842)
What is Boeing doing for its stranded astronauts?
NASA and Boeing are using the astronauts’ extra time aboard the ISS to further evaluate the thruster issue that jammed Starliner’s attempt to dock with the ISS on June 6.
Stephen Hirschhorn, NASA’s chief flight engineer, LinkedIn He created this page to try to clarify some of the Starliner issues. “The issues that have been reported on Starliner – the helium leaks in the reaction control thrusters and propulsion system – are all in the spacecraft’s service module,” he explained. “Once the crew leaves the ISS and de-orbits, the service module is discarded and burns up in the atmosphere on re-entry. So the helium system and thrusters will not return to Earth for failure analysis; they’re gone. So the only way to know what’s going on up there is to be in space.”
When will the stranded astronauts return to Earth?
According to NASA, Starliner can stay docked at the ISS for up to 45 days, or up to 72 days with backup systems.
Last week, NASA announced it was aiming for an early July return, saying the ISS mission team needed additional time to thoroughly investigate the problem with the propulsion system.
“We are taking our time and following standard mission management team processes,” Steve Stich, NASA’s commercial crew program manager, said in a statement earlier this week. “We are making data-driven decisions regarding the management of the small helium system leak and thruster performance observed during rendezvous and docking.”