The crew of the Boeing CST-100 Starliner has received encouraging news regarding their anticipated return to Earth. Recently finished ground testing of the spacecraft’s thrusters, which have kept it in orbit since early June, has cleared the way for Boeing and NASA to start planning the vessel’s homeward journey.
An update disclosed that the 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 analyzing the collected data. The objective of the test was to assess thruster degradation to better understand why some thrusters were inoperable during flight and identify any potential impacts of reactivating those thrusters on the overall mission.
The term “de-selected” refers to the thrusters that ceased functioning. Prior to and during the Starliner’s launch, tanks containing the helium needed for the thrusters experienced leaks, resulting in several delays. Officials announced last month that the spacecraft has 70 hours of helium onboard, despite needing only seven. They indicated earlier this month that the vehicle could return home immediately if necessary but noted that they are not fully prepared for that scenario just yet.
In their last update, NASA and Boeing mentioned that a return flight could occur at the end of this month. However, the timeline is now less definitive. The statement noted, “Boeing and NASA engineers will proceed with thruster disassembly and inspections, and advance towards finalizing 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.”