Boeing's Starliner astronauts could return aboard SpaceX capsule in February 2025, NASA says
WASHINGTON: A NASA official said Wednesday that two astronauts sent to the International Space Station in June aboard Boeing's Starliner could return to the station aboard SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft in February 2025 if the Starliner is still deemed unsafe to return to Earth.
The US space agency is discussing a possible plan with SpaceX to leave two seats open on the upcoming Crew Dragon spacecraft for NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, the first crew to fly on Boeing's Starliner capsule.
The astronauts' test mission, initially expected to last about eight days aboard the space station, was delayed by problems with the Starliner's propulsion system, raising growing questions about the spacecraft's ability to return them to Earth safely as planned.
A Boeing spokesman said if NASA decides to change the Starliner mission, the company “will take necessary steps to reconfigure the Starliner to return without a crew.”
A failure of the Starliner's thrusters during its approach to the International Space Station in June and multiple leaks of helium, which is used to pressurize the thrusters, prompted Boeing to launch a series of tests to understand the cause and propose solutions to NASA, which has the final say. The latest test results have revealed new information that heightens concerns about a return to normal.
The latest test data has sparked controversy and debate within NASA over whether to take the risk of Starliner returning to Earth or opt to use the Crew Dragon spacecraft instead.
Using SpaceX to return astronauts, who Boeing plans to bring back aboard its Starliner, would be a major blow to the space giant, which has been trying to compete with SpaceX and its more experienced Crew Dragon for years.
The Starliner has been docked at the International Space Station for 63 of its maximum 90 days, and is at the same docking station where Crew Dragon will launch the next crew of astronauts.
Early Tuesday morning, NASA used a SpaceX rocket and a Northrop Grumman capsule to deliver the usual food and supplies to the station, including extra clothing for Wilmore and Williams.
The high-risk Starliner mission is the final test required before NASA certifies the spacecraft for routine astronaut flights to and from the International Space Station. Crew Dragon has been approved by NASA for astronaut flights in 2020.
Starliner's development has been slowed by a series of management and engineering problems. Since 2016, Boeing has lost $1.6 billion, including $125 million from Starliner's current test mission, according to stock market filings.
Concerns at NASA
A meeting this week of NASA's Commercial Crew Program, which oversees the Starliner spacecraft, ended with some officials disagreeing with a plan to accept Boeing's test data and use Starliner to bring astronauts home, officials said at a news conference.
“We didn’t do a survey that could be generalized,” said Steve Stich, Commercial Crew project leader.
“We’ve heard a lot of concerns from a lot of people, and the decision is still unclear,” added Ken Bowersox, NASA’s chief of space operations.
Boeing executives did not attend Wednesday's news conference.
While no decision has been made yet on whether to use Starliner or Crew Dragon, NASA is trying to give Boeing more time to test and gather more data to make a better case for trusting Starliner, officials said. NASA expects to make a decision next week.
On Tuesday, the agency delayed SpaceX’s Crew Dragon mission by more than a month, a routine flight called Crew-9 that was expected to carry three NASA astronauts and one Russian cosmonaut to the ISS.
NASA's ISS program chief says the agency has not yet decided which astronauts to send on the mission to replace Wilmore and Williams, if needed.
Boeing's testing so far has shown four of its JetStar liners failing in June due to overheating and automatic shutdowns, while other thrusters fired repeatedly during tests appear to be weaker than normal due to some sort of fuel constraint.
Ground testing in late July at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico helped reveal that overheating in the thrusters had warped the Teflon seals, clogged the thruster's thrust tubes and reduced thrust.
“That made me feel more uneasy and I didn’t understand all the physics of what was going on,” Stich said, explaining why NASA seemed more willing to discuss Crew Dragon contingency plans after previously downplaying the possibility to reporters.
