On the Failure of the Space Shuttle Challenger and the Mission to the ISS of the Starliner Space Shuttle, and a No-Go Theorem
Hundreds of people have been sent into space by NASA. Doing that is hard, but for an agency like NASA, it is supposed to be as routine as one can expect.
Starliner never made it to the ISS on that trip, and NASA required a second test flight without any astronauts. When it launched again in 2022, two thrusters on Starliner failed to fire as expected. It successfully switched to backup thrusters and docked to the space station.
That is, of course, the prudent move. The Challenger and Columbia space shuttle disasters could have been prevented by more thorough checks. It leaves both Williams and Wilmore stuck in space.
When the Starliner astronauts aren’t stuck, they may be able to get theirs back at the I.S. Space Force Station
Now, NASA and Boeing object to that kind of characterization; they have emphasized that in an emergency, the astronauts can take the spacecraft home. But if the pair can’t come home yet, because of circumstances outside their control, and there’s no timetable for when they could return, that seems to fit the very definition of being stuck.
When astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on June 5, they thought they’d be back in plenty of time for the Juneteenth holiday.
“They’re not stuck in space,” agrees Laura Forczyk, executive director of Astralytical, a space consulting group. The astronauts are comfortably housed at the International Space Station.
The development of Starliner has not been smooth. During its first test flight, which did not include anyone on board, it failed to reach its expected altitude. The problem was traced to an onboard clock that was set incorrect, which caused the Starliner’s engines to fire at the wrong time.
The project suffered two more problems when it was found that the parachute system could fail and that the tape used to hold wiring could catch on fire. Fixing both issues pushed back the launch to this spring.
NASA took weeks to determine that there were no serious leaks that would cause a helium shortage during the Starliner mission.
Eventually, the spacecraft docked successfully with the space station, and four of the five thrusters were brought back online. But NASA later disclosed it had found four additional helium leaks in different parts of the spacecraft, bringing the total to five.
In the coming week, NASA will be doing a lot of tests on the Starliner propotial at its White Sand Test Facility in New Mexico. To see how the test thruster works, the engineers will put it through mock launches, dockings and landing burns, and also confirm that the tests can safely bring Williams and Wilmore home.
The program manager for NASAs Commercial Crew Program told reporters that once the testing is done, then they will look at the plan for landing. He says the process could take weeks.
News media had been suggesting that Williams and Wilmore might be stuck on the station. It’s a claim that Boeing, in particular, seems to bristle at.
In a real pinch, NASA could use either a SpaceX Dragon capsule or a Russian Soyuz capsule to bring the duo home, but Forczyk doubts that will be necessary.
Source: ‘We’re not stuck.’ Why Boeing’s Starliner isn’t returning to Earth (yet)
Why Boeing isn’t returning to Earth (yet): A characterization of the problems at the Starliner, Boeing’s 737 Max, and other aerospace giants
“I don’t see it being critically important or life threatening.” I believe they are being extra cautious because this vehicle is not functioning as it should.
Forczyk notes that the problems with the helium system and the thrusters are located in Starliner’s service module, a section of the spacecraft that will be jettisoned before landing. She says that engineers might want to stay at the station longer to collect more data from the module before it burns up.
Stich says that Butch and Suni were prepared to execute an emergency undock and landing.
The company that was given the least amount of money, the one that flew people in 2020 and completed eight regular missions for NASA to the space station, has done well.
Ron Epstein, an analyst at Bank of America, says that the problems are part of bigger issues at the aerospace giant. He doesn’t believe you can look at it in isolation.
Boeing has also seenproblems with its 737 Max aircraft, including a door that flew off an aircraft earlier this year, and its delivery of two 747s to be used as the presidential Air Force One has also been delayed.
“You have management teams over a number of years that have focused more on shareholder return than the core engineering business of the company,” he says.
Source: ‘We’re not stuck.’ Why Boeing’s Starliner isn’t returning to Earth (yet)
Astronomy of the Space Shuttle: a study of Starliner’s first flight in February 2025, or when Boeing might walk away
February 2025. is the scheduled time for Starliner’s first regular flight carrying astronauts. It’s unclear whether NASA will certify the new craft in time. Even if it did, it would likely conduct just a handful of flights before NASA retires the Space Station in 2030.
Given all that, Epstein says it’s possible that, if NASA requires extensive modifications and fixes to Starliner, Boeing may decide to walk away from the program altogether.