The crew of the Boeing CST-100 Starliner received encouraging news regarding their return to Earth. Recent tests of the spacecraft’s thrusters, which have left it in orbit since early June, have been successfully completed. Boeing and NASA had been awaiting these results before they could formulate a plan for the spacecraft’s homecoming.
An update released last week confirmed, “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 reviewing the data.” The purpose of the tests was to assess thruster deterioration to better understand why certain thrusters were inoperative during flight, and to evaluate any impact that reinstating those thrusters might have on the Crew Flight Test.
The term “de-selected” refers to the malfunctioning thrusters, which failed due to helium leaks from storage tanks before and during the Starliner launch, causing several delays. Last month, officials mentioned that the spacecraft has 70 hours of helium on board, significantly more than the seven hours it requires. While they indicated earlier this month that the ship could return immediately if necessary, they also clarified that they are not fully prepared for its return yet.
In their latest update, NASA and Boeing suggested that a return flight could occur at the end of this month. However, the timeline has become less specific: “Boeing and NASA engineers will proceed with thruster disassembly and inspections and continue finalizing the 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.”