The Boeing CST-100 Starliner crew has received encouraging news regarding the spacecraft’s return to Earth. Recent ground testing of the Starliner’s thrusters, which have kept the vehicle in orbit since early June, has been completed. Both Boeing and NASA were awaiting the results of these tests before they could start planning the spacecraft’s return journey.
An update released 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 data reviews.” The tests aimed to evaluate thruster degradation to help understand why some thrusters failed during the flight and the potential effects of reactivating them on the crew flight test.
The term “de-selected” refers to the failure of some thrusters. Issues arose from helium tanks that control the thrusters leaking both before and during the Starliner’s launch, resulting in multiple delays. During a press conference last month, officials noted that the spacecraft has 70 hours of helium onboard, despite only needing seven hours. While they mentioned earlier this month that the ship could technically return at any time, they clarified that they are not ready for that yet.
In their most recent update, NASA and Boeing indicated that a return flight could occur by the end of the month. However, the timeline has shifted to a less specific period: “Boeing and NASA engineers will proceed with thruster disassembly and inspections, and advance the final flight rationale in preparation for readiness reviews for Starliner’s nominal return to Earth with commander Butch Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams in the coming weeks.”