The Boeing CST-100 Starliner crew has received promising news regarding their return to Earth. Following the completion of ground testing for the spacecraft’s thrusters, which have kept it in orbit since early June, Boeing and NASA are now preparing for the vessel’s return journey.
An update released late last week stated, “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 tests aimed to investigate thruster degradation, which will help the teams understand why some thrusters were rendered inactive during the flight and assess the implications of reactivating those thrusters for the Crew Flight Test.
The term “de-selected” refers to the thrusters that ceased functioning. Issues arose with helium tanks that control the thrusters, which were leaking during the launch, causing several delays. Officials noted at a press conference last month that the Starliner carries 70 hours’ worth of helium, despite only requiring seven hours for its mission. While they previously mentioned that the spacecraft could return at any moment if necessary, they clarified that they are not fully prepared for that eventuality just yet.
In their latest update, NASA and Boeing indicated that a return flight could occur by the end of the month. However, the timeline has now become less specific: “Boeing and NASA engineers will continue 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.”