CAPE CANAVERAL – NASA is discussing how and when to bring two astronauts back from the International Space Station, after their return aboard the troubled Boeing capsule was repeatedly postponed.
Will they seize the opportunity and fly them home soon on Boeing’s Starliner, or will they wait and fly them back next year with SpaceX?
Butch Wilmore and Sonny Williams have been there since early June. Their scheduled eight-day mission is now approaching two months and may exceed eight months.
Testing continues and Boeing has expressed confidence in its spacecraft, but NASA is divided. A decision is expected next week.
What about Boeing Starliner?
This is Boeing’s first time launching astronauts, after two empty Starliners were plagued by software and other problems. Even before Wilmore and Williams lifted off on June 5, their capsule developed a leak in a propulsion tube. Boeing and NASA deemed the small helium leak stable and isolated, and proceeded with the test flight. But as the Starliner approached the space station the next day, four more leaks appeared. Five thrusters failed.
The capsule docked without problems and four thrusters finally worked. But engineers rushed to test the thrusters on Earth and in space. Two months later, the root cause of the thruster malfunction had not been found.
All but one of the 28 boosters appear to be fine, but the fear is that if too many fail again, the crew's safety could be at risk. The thrusters are needed at the end of the flight to keep the capsule in the right position for the critical orbit burn.
