Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft was scheduled to launch tonight to get certification. The mission was scrubbed for today. Atlas valve issue. The scrub was recommended after launch control teams detected anomalous behavior by the pressure regulation valve in the liquid oxygen tank of the Centaur upper stage of the ULA Atlas V launch vehicle. Engineers are analyzing the data to fully understand the issue and determine any corrective actions. Mission managers will convene to decide next steps and potential timing for another launch attempt.
Launch of the ULA (United Launch Alliance) Atlas V rocket and Starliner spacecraft is targeted for 10:34 p.m. EDT Monday, May 6 (0234 UTC Tuesday, May 7) from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
The two NASA astronauts aboard, flight commander Butch Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams, will test the end-to-end capabilities of the Starliner system, including launch, docking, and return to Earth. After a one-week stay docked to the International Space Station, the Starliner and crew will land under parachutes in the western United States.
Hopefully, this mission is safe and successful.
The Boeing Starliner (aka CST-100 is a class of two partially reusable spacecraft designed to transport crew to the International Space Station (ISS).
The capsule has a diameter of 15 feet (4.56 m), slightly larger than either the Apollo command module or SpaceX Crew Dragon and smaller than the Artemis Orion capsule. Starliner can hold a crew of up to seven people and can remain docked to the ISS for up to seven months. The Starliner capsule is designed for reuse on up to ten missions. Starliner is launched on Atlas V from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
In 2010, NASA selected Starliner and the SpaceX Crew Dragon, for the Commercial Crew Transportation Capability (CCtCap) contract round. The first crewed test flight test was initially planned to occur in 2017.
After a lengthy development process with multiple delays, Boeing flew the Orbital Flight Test 2 on May 19, 2022. The Crewed Flight Test was delayed until May 6, 2024. This is expected to be the last test flight before Starliner enters operational service with the Starliner-1 mission in 2025.
The second Starliner unmanned mission launched on May 19, 2022. Two Orbital Maneuvering and Attitude Control System (OMACS) thrusters failed during the orbital insertion burn, but the spacecraft was able to compensate using the remaining OMACS thrusters with the addition of the Reaction Control System (RCS) thrusters. A couple of RCS thrusters used to maneuver Starliner also failed during docking due to low chamber pressure. Some thermal systems used to cool the spacecraft showed extra cold temperatures, requiring engineers to manage it during the docking.
The Starliner program has a had software and equipment problems.
On June 1, 2023, Boeing announced this third flight was indefinitely delayed, due to problems with the parachute harness and flammable tape on wiring. On August 7, 2023, Boeing announced that it was resuming preparations for a launch, and that it hoped to resolve the issue with the flammable tape by September 2023, and to address the parachute harness issues by November 2023.
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
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