NASA has decided to postpone its next astronaut launch in order to allow more time at the International Space Station for Boeing’s new crew capsule, which has been experiencing issues.
The space agency announced on Tuesday that SpaceX’s four-person flight, originally scheduled for this month, has been rescheduled for September 24 at the earliest. This delay will provide NASA with additional time to address thruster and leak problems that arose with Boeing’s Starliner capsule following its June launch with a crew on board.
As of Tuesday, it has been two months since Starliner’s test pilots, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, should have returned from their mission. NASA is exploring various options for bringing these veteran astronauts back, including the possibility of using a SpaceX capsule for their return journey.
With only two docking ports at the space station capable of accommodating U.S. astronaut capsules, both ports are currently occupied. Therefore, one of them will need to be vacated before the next SpaceX crew can arrive. Russia has its own docking locations for its Soyuz capsules.
This setback also means that the four astronauts who flew up with SpaceX in March will now have a longer mission duration than originally planned.
Boeing has been conducting thruster test firings on the ground and in space over the past few weeks to investigate the thruster failures that occurred prior to Starliner’s arrival at the space station on June 6. Most of the thrusters have been successfully restored, but helium leaks in the capsule’s propulsion system have also been identified.
In response to the testing, Boeing stated last week that they remain confident in the Starliner spacecraft’s ability to safely return with crew on board.
Boeing and SpaceX were selected by NASA to provide astronaut transportation to and from the space station after the retirement of the shuttles in 2011. NASA signed contracts with both companies to ensure a backup option in case one of them faced any setbacks.
SpaceX successfully launched its first crew in 2020 and has since completed nine astronaut flights for NASA. The upcoming flight will be their 10th mission for the space agency, and SpaceX has also conducted private crew missions.
Boeing has encountered several challenges with the Starliner program, including having to launch an empty capsule twice before committing to a crewed mission due to software and other issues. These delays have resulted in significant financial losses for the company.
By Marcia Dunn
