“And we are going to bring some cargo home too, which is critical for future missions to the ISS.” “That’s going to be of critical importance on this mission coming up, that we demonstrate we can do rendezvous,” NASA associate administer Robert Cabana said during August’s briefing. On December 20, during the first Starliner flight test, the space capsule’s mission elapsed time system malfunctioned, leading to unexpected maneuvering and burning through propellant, ultimately preventing the vehicle from attempting the ISS rendezvous. “That’s one of the deeper reasons we are here for this launch,” Melroy explained.Ĭritical background - Before the Starliner can begin ferrying that additional cargo and crew to the ISS and catalyze more great science, the spacecraft needs to prove to NASA that it can meet the mission requirements, including the failed docking procedure. NASA deputy administrator Pam Melroy said during an August 2021 mission briefing that the program provides a boost to crew time and cargo, which NASA can use to accomplish more science on the ISS. Boeing - and NASA - hope Starliner can soon begin service as a second Commercial Crew vehicle. SpaceX first flew astronauts to the ISS in November aboard its Crew Dragon vehicle. There will be live NASA TV coverage at What is the purpose of Starliner?īoeing and SpaceX are the only two companies to win contracts for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, which aims to use commercial providers to fly astronauts and cargo to the ISS and end the space agency’s reliance on the Russian Soyuz launching American astronauts from Kazakhstan.īoeing updated hopeful viewers on Twitter. Boeing and NASA teams will take the time they need to ensure the safety and integrity of the spacecraft and the achievement of our mission objectives." How to watch Starliner 2022 launch John Vollmer, vice president and program manager of Boeing's Commercial Crew Program, echoed Stich in a statement emailed to Inverse: "Human spaceflight is a complex, precise, and unforgiving endeavor. “It has taken a methodical approach and sound engineering to effectively examine.” “This is a complex issue involving hazardous commodities and intricate areas of the spacecraft that are not easily accessed,” NASA’s Commercial Crew Program Manager Steve Stich announced. The reason for the delay is continued troubleshooting of a stuck oxidizer isolation valve by a Boeing and NASA team. NASA and Boeing have now given up on launching the Starliner before the end of the year, with the space agency announcing on October 8 that it will seek launch opportunities: “In the first half of 2022 for Orbital Flight Test-2.” The next available launch window on August 4 also came and went. The OFT-2 mission was rescheduled again for Augbut was scrubbed due to “unexpected valve positions indicated in the Starliner propulsion system,” per an update from NASA. For Starliner to dock, the ISS has to be business as usual. The mission was rescheduled for Jbut that launch was canceled after the Russian Nauka module on the ISS mistakenly fired its thrusters and threw the space station out of its proper orientation. The problems: software and hardware malfunctions have canceled launches and disrupted Starliner flight tests going back to late 2020.Ī Starliner failed to make rendezvous with the ISS in December 2020 due to a software malfunction. The mission is dubbed Orbital Flight Test-2, or OFT-2. The mission: an uncrewed Boeing Starliner spacecraft will ride a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket to orbit and dock with the International Space Station. The Boeing Orbital Flight Test-2 is a case study in second (and third, and fourth, and fifth, sixth) chances.
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