The Boeing CST-100 Starliner crew has received encouraging news regarding their spacecraft’s return to Earth. Recent ground tests for the spacecraft’s thrusters, which have left it orbiting since early June, have been successfully completed. Boeing and NASA had been awaiting these tests to begin organizing the vehicle’s homecoming.
A statement released late last week noted, “Ground 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 data reviews.” The purpose of these tests was to assess the degradation of the thrusters to understand why some were deactivated during the flight and to evaluate the possible effects of reactivating them on the overall Crew Flight Test.
The term “de-selected” indicates that certain thrusters became inoperative. Prior to and during the launch, the helium tanks that manage the thrusters experienced leaks, which contributed to several postponements. During a press conference last month, officials revealed that the spacecraft contains 70 hours’ worth of helium, though only seven are required. While they indicated that the craft could return immediately if necessary, they also mentioned that preparations for the return are not yet complete.
In their latest update, NASA and Boeing mentioned that a return flight might occur at the end of this month. However, the timeline has become less specific: “Boeing and NASA engineers will proceed with thruster disassembly and inspections and advance towards finalizing flight rationale to support readiness reviews for Starliner’s intended return to Earth with commander Butch Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams in the coming weeks.”