The two astronauts, while initially scheduled to carry out an eight-day mission, will remain in space for more than eight months
The spacecraft Starliner finally returned to Earth, but without the two astronauts that remain in space, as the NASA considered that the risk was too great.
According to the Reuters agency, the capsule landed at 07:01 (Greece time) at the White Sands space base in New Mexico, in the southwestern United States. It entered the atmosphere at a speed of 27,400 km/h. About 45 minutes later it deployed a series of parachutes to slow its descent while airbags inflated seconds before it touched down.
NASA and Boeing welcomed #Starliner back to Earth at 12:01am ET (0401 UTC) on Saturday, Sept. 7, following the uncrewed spacecraft’s landing in New Mexico—concluding its flight test to the @Space_Station: https://t.co/rOrGmEZtgP pic.twitter.com/LUqnGfuDME
— NASA (@NASA) September 7, 2024
According to NASA, it had departed from the ISS about six hours earlier.
Boeing’s reputation suffered a further blow in June when engine problems and solar leaks in the capsule were detected during its first manned flight.
Despite the manufacturer’s attempts to convince NASA of the safety of its craft, the space agency preferred to bring back Butch Wilmore and Sunny Williams with Boeing’s rival, SpaceX, and its Crew Dragon spacecraft.
Agence France-Presse noted that the two astronauts, who will not return until next year, will stay more than eight months in space, while initially they were going to carry out a mission of … eight days.
NASA’s commercial manned flight program manager Steve Stich told reporters this week that, despite Boeing’s confidence in its projections, the space agency “did not feel comfortable” moving forward with the Starliner “because of the uncertainty surrounding the model.”
This return flight was expected to help Boeing reassure its customers and secure new deals for manned flights.
During the return flight the ground teams monitored the performance of the Starliner from all sides, especially its engines which had experienced problems.
#Starliner landed today at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico at 12:01 am ET on Sept. 7 (10:01 p.m. MT on Sept. 6). Teams on the ground welcomed the spacecraft and are now preparing to transport Starliner back to Florida for analysis and refurbishment.
More:… pic.twitter.com/UEPdkuXswZ
— Boeing Space (@BoeingSpace) September 7, 2024
After the Starliner’s return, “we’ll be able to have a better idea of when we can certify the craft and when we can resume flying,” Steve Stich said.
Ten years ago, NASA ordered Boeing and SpaceX a new spacecraft each to carry astronauts to the ISS. With both vehicles, he aims to not find himself without a solution again should there be a problem with one or the other.
But Elon Musk’s company was ahead of Boeing by a wide margin and for four years it has single-handedly covered the role of the American space taxi.
