The Boeing CST-100 Starliner crew received positive news regarding their impending return to Earth. Recently, ground testing of the spacecraft’s thrusters was completed, which had kept the Starliner in space since early June. Boeing and NASA were awaiting the results of these tests to initiate planning for the spacecraft’s homeward journey.
An update released late last week confirmed that the ground testing of a Starliner Reaction Control System (RCS) thruster at the White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico has concluded, allowing teams to focus on data analysis. The objective of the tests was to assess thruster degradation and understand why some thrusters were non-operational during flight and the potential implications of reactivating them for the upcoming Crew Flight Test.
The term “de-selected” pertains to some thrusters that ceased operation. Issues arose prior to and during the Starliner launch when helium tanks controlling the thrusters were found to be leaking, which resulted in several delays. Officials mentioned last month that the spacecraft carries 70 hours’ worth of helium, though only seven hours are necessary for its operations. While they indicated that the Starliner could return home if necessary, they stated they were not yet fully prepared for the landing.
Recent updates from NASA and Boeing suggested that a return flight could occur at the end of the month. However, the timeline remains uncertain as they will now proceed with thruster disassembly and inspections to finalize readiness reviews for Starliner’s return to Earth with commander Butch Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams in the upcoming weeks.