The crew of the Boeing CST-100 Starliner has received encouraging news about their impending return home. Recent ground testing of the spacecraft’s thrusters, which have kept it in orbit since early June, has been completed. Boeing and NASA were awaiting these tests to start planning for the spacecraft’s journey back to Earth.
An update stated, “Ground testing of a Starliner Reaction Control System (RCS) thruster at White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico is complete, and teams are now focusing on data reviews.” The goal of the tests was to assess the degradation of the thrusters, which will help the teams understand why some were deemed unusable during flight and the potential effects of reactivating them on the upcoming Crew Flight Test.
The term “de-selected” refers to certain thrusters that became non-operational. Prior to and during launch, helium tanks controlling the thrusters experienced leaks, resulting in several delays. During a recent press conference, officials noted that the Starliner has 70 hours of helium onboard, despite only needing seven. While they mentioned earlier this month that the spacecraft could return if necessary, they indicated that they are not fully prepared for that scenario yet.
In the latest update, NASA and Boeing suggested that a return flight could occur towards the end of this month. However, the timeline has become less specific: “Boeing and NASA engineers will proceed with thruster disassembly and inspections, and move forward with 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.”