The Boeing CST-100 Starliner crew has received encouraging news regarding their return home. Recent ground tests of the spacecraft’s thrusters, which have left it in orbit since early June, have been successfully completed. Boeing and NASA were waiting for these tests to finalize plans for the spacecraft’s journey back to Earth.
An update from the past week confirmed that the ground testing of a Starliner Reaction Control System (RCS) thruster took place at the White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico. Teams are now focusing on reviewing the data collected during the tests. The main goal was to analyze any degradation in the thrusters, providing insights into why some had to be de-selected during flight and assessing the potential impacts of reinstating those thrusters for the upcoming Crew Flight Test.
The term “de-selected” refers to thrusters that malfunctioned. Prior to and during the Starliner’s launch, helium tanks controlling the thrusters experienced leaks, causing several delays. During a press conference last month, it was reported that the spacecraft had 70 hours of helium onboard, despite only requiring seven. Although officials indicated that the Starliner could return to Earth immediately if necessary, they emphasized that they are not yet fully prepared for that scenario.
In their last update, NASA and Boeing mentioned that a return flight might occur by the end of this month. However, the timeline has since become less definite: “Boeing and NASA engineers will proceed with thruster disassembly and inspections, and advance in finalizing flight rationale to support readiness reviews for Starliner’s planned return to Earth with commander Butch Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams in the coming weeks.”