On July 3, 2024, during a manned flight test, the Boeing spacecraft Starliner was seen docking with the International Space Station from the window of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft “Endeavour”.
NASA
NASA executives have been in deep discussions this week about whether to return the agency’s astronauts to the spacecraft boeing companyStarliner capsule catches fire, or chooses to use SpaceX’s spacecraft to rescue the crew.
The agency’s concerns about Starliner stem from its failure to determine the root cause of multiple thruster failures during the docking process, a person familiar with the matter said. ) and Suni Williams to the International Space Station.
NASA has been discussing this week the possibility of returning Starliner without a payload and instead using SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft to return astronauts. The person said there is no consensus among those responsible for making the decision and the outcome of NASA’s ongoing discussions is unpredictable given the variety of factors involved.
The Starliner capsule “Calypso” has been in space for 59 days and counting. The mission is intended as the final step in proving that Boeing’s long-delayed spacecraft can safely fly long-distance crewed missions to and from the International Space Station.
The Boeing crew flight was originally planned to last at least nine days. But it has been extended several times while the company and NASA conduct tests on the ground and in space to try to understand thruster issues.
While NASA and Boeing leaders have publicly characterized the delay as a data-gathering exercise, concerns raised in recent days suggest insiders are less confident that Starliner will return astronauts safely than the agency has disclosed.
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technical art First reported NASA’s different views on the Starliner situation. NASA has previously pointed to SpaceX as a backup but has tried to downplay the possibility, saying Boeing’s spacecraft is the “primary option” for return.
Boeing said it had a “flight reason” to return the Starliner with the astronauts on board, meaning it believed the spacecraft could return without much risk.
“We remain confident in the Starliner spacecraft and its ability to return safely with its crew,” a Boeing spokesperson said in a statement to CNBC. “We support NASA’s request for more data, analysis and data review to confirm that the spacecraft safe escape and landing capabilities.
If Starliner returns empty, the most likely alternative is to use SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft to bring astronauts back to the Crew-9 mission, which is currently scheduled to launch four astronauts in the next few weeks. That would free up two seats for Wilmore and Williams.
NASA Crew-9 members stand next to SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. From left: NASA pilot Nick Hague,
NASA
NASA did not respond to CNBC’s request for comment on the ongoing Starliner discussions, but told Ars Technica in a statement that the agency “is evaluating all options for return.”
“No decisions have been made and the agency will continue to provide updates on its plans,” NASA said.
believe in push
back Tested last weekend, NASA noted that 27 of Starliner’s 28 thrusters appear to be working well. Thrusters, also called reaction control systems or RCS engines, help spacecraft move in orbit.
But from an engineering perspective, no root cause was found for five thrusters that failed on the flight to the International Space Station, meaning the risk of more thrusters failing during the return flight remains.
Mark Nappi, Boeing’s vice president of Starliner projects, said at a press conference on July 25 that the thruster test made a “very important” discovery that “may be the root cause.” But despite this, the company has yet to determine the root cause.
“We will continue to disassemble the hardware to ultimately prove this,” Nappi said at the time.
NASA now needs to decide whether it wants to trust that the unknown problems with the Starliner thrusters won’t reoccur, possibly even causing other problems.
unpredictable results
When the Commercial Crew Program Control Board met earlier this week to discuss Starliner’s return, NASA lacked consensus. PCBs are a standard part of NASA’s decision-making process dating back to the space shuttle days and are designed to ensure that any risks are escalated to the agency’s highest levels of authority.
The PCB, led by Commercial Crew project manager Steve Stich, has not yet made a decision on whether to move forward with a flight readiness review, the next major step the agency will take to determine a return date for Starliner. The next PCB meeting is expected to be held in the coming days, and NASA is a blog post Thursday, with the return trip scheduled to continue into next week.
If any member of the PCB disagrees with the decision to return Starliner with its crew, the decision will be escalated up the chain of command until the objection is resolved. As it stands, discussions within the PCB have no predictable outcome, as NASA personnel discuss the level of risk involved in returning the crew aboard Starliner.
make a choice
NASA has often emphasized that “the safety of astronauts remains the top priority” when making decisions about human spaceflight, an inherently risky endeavor.
But the choices facing NASA have further implications that threaten Boeing’s participation in the agency’s commercial crew program. already, Boeing’s Starliner losses total more than $1.5 billion due to repeated setbacks and years of delays in spacecraft development.
If NASA backs Boeing and returns Wilmore and Williams to Starliner, the agency will accept a risk that is currently unquantifiable. A major failure during return would endanger astronaut lives and would put pressure on NASA leadership to end its contract with Boeing and its participation in the program.
If NASA decides to return Starliner empty, it would be a vote of no confidence in Boeing and could cause the company to cut its losses and withdraw from the program.
Furthermore, if NASA adopts SpaceX’s alternative and Starliner returns home without incident, the agency will face backlash as it is seen as overreacting to its public assertion weeks ago that there was no significant risk.
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