The Boeing CST-100 Starliner crew recently received encouraging news regarding their return to Earth. Testing of the spacecraft’s thrusters, which have kept it in orbit since early June, has been successfully completed. Boeing and NASA have been awaiting the results of these tests to start planning the spacecraft’s journey home.
A statement released last week noted, “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 goal of these tests was to assess thruster performance and understand why some units malfunctioned during flight, as well as the implications of possibly reactivating them for the upcoming Crew Flight Test.
The term “de-selected” refers to the thrusters that became non-operational. Issues arose from leaking helium tanks that manage thruster operation, causing multiple launch delays. Officials mentioned last month that the spacecraft is equipped with 70 hours’ worth of helium, yet it requires only seven hours. They affirmed that while the spacecraft could technically return to Earth immediately if necessary, they are not fully prepared for such an event.
The most recent update from NASA and Boeing indicated that a return flight might occur at the end of this month. However, the timeline has since become more uncertain: “Boeing and NASA engineers will continue with disassembly and inspections of the thrusters, and they will proceed with finalizing flight rationale to support readiness reviews for Starliner’s anticipated return to Earth with commander Butch Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams in the coming weeks.”