Boeing’s Starliner is getting ready for its long-anticipated return to Earth, leaving behind two astronauts on board the International Space Station (ISS). It won’t be routine, as Starliner will have to quickly and safely move away from the ISS despite its malfunctioning thrusters and helium leaks.
The glitching Boeing spacecraft is scheduled to undock from the space station on Friday at 6:04 p.m. ET, beginning its six-hour journey back home. The crew capsule is returning without a crew on board, targeting a landing at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico on Saturday at 12:03 a.m. ET. For its undocking, Starliner will execute a breakout burn that’s meant to put less pressure on its thrusters and help it move away quicker from the space station.
The spacecraft’s undocking and return will be streamed live on NASA’s website and the space agency’s YouTube Channel. You can also watch it at the livestream below. The livestream will begin at 5:45 p.m. ET on Friday for the undocking of the spacecraft, and will resume at 10:50 p.m. ET for the anticipated landing of Starliner.
Boeing’s first crewed test to the ISS is finally coming to an end after a less-than-ideal journey to orbit. And that’s putting it mildly. The spacecraft launched to the ISS on June 5, carrying NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunni Williams. Starliner has been docked to the space station for three months as teams on the ground debated whether or not to return the crew on board the troubled spacecraft.
During its ride to the ISS, five of the spacecraft’s thrusters failed and the spacecraft developed five helium leaks, one of which was identified prior to liftoff. Mission teams ran tests on the ground to try and identify the main issue behind the thruster glitch before ultimately deciding to return an uncrewed Starliner and bring back its crew on board SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft.
The two astronauts, Williams and Wilmore, will return with SpaceX’s Crew-9 mission. The Starliner crew is now slated for return in February 2025, after having spent around eight months in space while originally planning for an eight-day stay on board the ISS.
The Crewed Flight Test is part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program and is meant to transport crew and cargo to and from the ISS under a $4.3 billion contract with the space agency. NASA’s other commercial partner, SpaceX, has so far launched eight crews to the space station, and is not only getting ready to launch its ninth crew but also return the stranded Starliner astronauts.
Starliner’s uncrewed return is a major blow to the program, which has suffered numerous delays and technical hiccups over the years. Let’s just hope that the spacecraft’s trip to Earth goes better than its journey to space. As for the future of the Starliner program, that’s now anyone’s guess.
More: Let’s Look Back at Boeing’s 10-Year Struggle to Launch Humans on Starliner
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