The Boeing CST-100 Starliner team has received promising news regarding its return to Earth. Recently, the ground testing of the spacecraft’s thrusters was completed, paving the way for planning the vessel’s homeward journey. This testing had kept the Starliner in space since early June as Boeing and NASA awaited the results.
“Ground testing of a Starliner Reaction Control System (RCS) thruster at the White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico is complete, and teams are now focusing on data reviews,” an update indicated last week. The primary goal of the tests was to assess thruster degradation to better understand the issues that led to some thrusters being deselected during flight, and to evaluate any potential impacts of restoring those thrusters to operation for the Crew Flight Test.
The term “de-selected” refers to certain thrusters that ceased functioning. Prior to and during the Starliner launch, helium tanks that control the thrusters experienced leaks, causing multiple delays. Despite this, officials noted at a press conference last month that the spacecraft has 70 hours of helium onboard, far more than the seven hours required. Although they mentioned that the spacecraft could head home if necessary, they emphasized that they are not fully prepared for its return just yet.
In their latest update, NASA and Boeing indicated that a return flight might occur at the end of this month, but the timeline is now less specific. “Boeing and NASA engineers will continue with the disassembly and inspection of the thrusters and proceed with 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 upcoming weeks.”