The crew of the Boeing CST-100 Starliner has received encouraging news regarding their return to Earth. Recently completed ground testing of the spacecraft’s thrusters, which have kept it in space since early June, has paved the way for Boeing and NASA to plan the vessel’s homecoming.
An update announced that “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 goal of these tests was to assess thruster degradation, which will help understand why some thrusters were rendered inoperable during flight and what effects reactivating them could have on the upcoming Crew Flight Test.
The term “de-selected” indicates that some thrusters malfunctioned. Prior to and during the Starliner launch, the helium tanks used to control the thrusters were leaking, causing several delays. Officials noted last month that the spacecraft contains 70 hours’ worth of helium, despite only requiring seven for its mission. Although they indicated earlier this month that the Starliner could return home immediately if necessary, they also specified that they weren’t fully prepared for that eventuality.
In their latest update, NASA and Boeing suggested that a return flight could be feasible by the end of the month. However, the timeline has since become less defined: “Boeing and NASA engineers will proceed with thruster disassembly and inspections, and advance towards finalizing flight rationale in preparation for readiness reviews for Starliner’s expected return to Earth with commander Butch Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams in the upcoming weeks.”