The Boeing CST-100 Starliner crew has received encouraging news regarding their return to Earth. Recent ground tests on the spacecraft’s thrusters, which have kept it in space since early June, have been completed. Boeing and NASA were waiting for these tests to begin preparations for the spacecraft’s homebound journey.
An update released late last week indicated, “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 data reviews.” The tests aimed to assess the thruster degradation to understand why some thrusters were deactivated during the flight and the potential impact of reactivating them on the Crew Flight Test.
The term “de-selected” refers to some thrusters that malfunctioned. There were issues with the helium tanks that control these thrusters, leading to multiple delays before and during the Starliner’s launch. Officials noted that while the spacecraft carries 70 hours of helium onboard, it only requires seven for operation. Although they mentioned earlier this month that the craft could return immediately if necessary, they stated that they are not yet fully prepared for that scenario.
The latest information from NASA and Boeing suggested that a return flight could occur at the end of this month. However, this timeline is now less certain: “Boeing and NASA engineers will proceed with thruster disassembly and inspections and continue to finalize flight rationale in support of readiness reviews for Starliner’s nominal return to Earth with commander Butch Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams in the upcoming weeks.”