The Boeing CST-100 Starliner crew has received positive news regarding their return to Earth. Recent testing of the spacecraft’s thrusters, which have left it in orbit since early June, has been completed. Boeing and NASA were waiting for these tests to conclude before planning the spacecraft’s homecoming.
An announcement last week 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 reviewing the data.” The purpose of the tests was to assess the degradation of the thrusters to understand why certain ones were rendered inoperable during the flight and to evaluate the implications of reactivating them on the overall mission.
Some thrusters were classified as “de-selected,” meaning they failed to operate. The helium tanks that regulate the thrusters experienced leaks both prior to and during launch, resulting in multiple postponements. At a recent press conference, officials mentioned that the spacecraft has enough helium for 70 hours of operation, while it only requires seven hours. They indicated that even though the craft could technically return to Earth at this moment, they are not prepared for its return just yet.
In their last update, NASA and Boeing suggested that a return might happen at the end of this month. However, the timeframe has become less specific: “Boeing and NASA engineers will proceed with the disassembly and inspection of the thrusters, and continue 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.”