Starliner Crew Could Be Stuck on ISS Until 2025

NASA is looking at backup option involving SpaceX
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 7, 2024 7:15 PM CDT
NASA: Starliner Crew Might Not Make It Home This Year
This photo provided by NASA shows Boeing's Starliner spacecraft docked to the Harmony module's forward port.   (NASA via AP)

Two NASA astronauts who went to the International Space Station on Boeing's Starliner spacecraft in early June for what was supposed to be an eight-day stay might not make it home until next year, NASA admitted on Wednesday. In what CNN describes as a "stunning change of tone for the space agency," officials said Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams might not return to Earth on Starliner because of problems with its thrusters. They said they are looking at a backup option that would involve the two astronauts returning on SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft in February 2025, reports the New York Times.

Under the backup plan, a Crew Dragon capsule that would normally bring four astronauts to the ISS for a six-month stay would bring up two. Wilmore and Williams would then serve as full ISS crew members until February and return on the SpaceX capsule. The Boeing capsule would be sent back to Earth uncrewed. Ken Bowersox, associate administrator for NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate, said Wednesday that the "chances of an uncrewed Starliner return have increased a little bit based on where things have gone over the last week or two," per CNN. But, he said, with "new data coming in, new analysis, different discussion—we could find ourselves shift in another way."

Steve Stich, NASA Commercial Crew program manager, said Wednesday that the agency needs to make a decision by mid-August, CNBC reports. He said people analyzing the mission disagree over "how much uncertainty they view in the data." NASA and Boeing have spent the last two months investigating the thruster failures and helium leaks detected when the capsule arrived at the ISS. Boeing said Friday that it believes Starliner is ready to fly, reports the Wall Street Journal. On Tuesday, NASA said it was bumping its next crew launch to next month because of the Starliner issue. (More Starliner stories.)

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