2024-08-24 06:16:00
A decision-making committee is set to meet on Saturday, in the presence of NASA Chief Bill Nelson. About an hour later, the space agency plans to hold a press conference, currently scheduled for 17:00 GMT.
Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams launched in early June aboard Starliner, and they have since been aboard the ISS, where their spacecraft has remained docked.
The spacecraft was initially supposed to bring them back to Earth eight days later, but problems detected in its propulsion system have led NASA to question its reliability.
This has prompted consideration of a drastic backup solution: bringing the passengers home, who have already spent two and a half months in the flying laboratory, with a regular SpaceX mission in February.
For weeks, teams from Boeing and NASA have been conducting tests to better understand the causes of the issues encountered during the flight, particularly concerning the spacecraft’s thrusters.
The main concern is whether Starliner is capable of generating the necessary thrust to break orbit and begin its descent to Earth.
If it’s decided that the spacecraft is not safe enough, it would then return empty.
A regular SpaceX mission, named Crew-9, would then launch at the end of September but would only carry two astronauts instead of four. It would remain docked at the ISS until its planned return to Earth in February, and would then bring back the two stranded Boeing astronauts in addition to the two Crew-9 astronauts.
Such an outcome would further tarnish Boeing’s image, which is already in turmoil following a series of malfunctions with its aircraft.
Ten years ago, NASA commissioned both Boeing and SpaceX to build new spacecraft to ferry its astronauts to the ISS. With two vehicles, it aims to avoid being left without a solution in case of issues with either one.
However, Elon Musk’s company has significantly outperformed Boeing and has been the sole American space taxi for the past four years.
This first crewed flight of Starliner, which has been years delayed due to setbacks during its development, was meant to be the final test before it began regular operations.