Being stranded at an airport because your flight is delayed by several hours is the worst, but two NASA astronauts are currently in an even worse situation. At this point they international space station I’m riding boeing starliner The spacecraft is nearly three weeks late.
Starliner is one of two manned spaceflight projects NASA has contracted with private companies to launch, initially First test flight carrying humans May 6th. But the problem is, Fuel valve failure and unrelated helium leak As a result, mission managers repeatedly delayed the launch date. NASA and Boeing previously Aiming for release on May 25thbut the release date was then postponed again to give it another chance. “It’s still under discussion.” A successful flight would pave the way for Starliner to become NASA’s second reliable launch vehicle after SpaceX’s Dragon crew capsule. This is an important milestone in humanity’s return to human space exploration — that is, if Starliner can overcome its technical problems.
NASA did everything in-house, from launching rockets to making space suits. Space race in the 60s and 70sthey worked closely with up-and-coming aerospace companies of the 21st century to create a new paradigm for spaceflight. NASA Commercial Crew Program.
In 2014, NASA contracts with both Boeing and SpaceX The company aims to develop and deliver rockets and crew capsules to safely transport astronauts to low Earth orbit and beyond, and has invested more than $6 billion in this effort. For decades, since the end of the space shuttle program, American astronauts have relied on international partners to get to their destinations. The Russian Soyuz capsule Frequent travel to the International Space Station (ISS). Partnership with Boeing and SpaceX is ensuring that even if one of its systems fails or becomes unavailable for some reason, NASA will have a way to get people into space without relying on international assistance.
“NASA’s Commercial Crew Program works with the U.S. aerospace industry to launch astronauts aboard American rockets and spacecraft from U.S. soil to the International Space Station.” Leah Cheshirespokesperson for NASA’s Johnson Space Center. “The goal of this program is to provide safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from orbiting laboratories.” [the ISS]”This will allow additional research time and increase the opportunity for discoveries in a testbed for human exploration. This innovative approach will also help the agency maintain a human presence in low Earth orbit and enable exploration to the Moon in preparation for Mars for the benefit of humanity.”
Subcontracting some of the work to outside agencies will allow NASA to focus on more ambitious projects. “By being able to purchase astronaut transportation from private companies as a fixed-price contract service, NASA can leverage its resources to put the first woman, first person of color, and first international partner on the moon. . artemis mission in preparation for a manned mission to Mars,” Cheshire added.
SpaceX Dragon already Completed test flight in 2020 Company’s falcon rocket, becoming the first commercial spacecraft to successfully accomplish such a feat, and has since successfully transported astronauts to and from the ISS. Meanwhile, Boeing’s Starliner faces some major challenges and setbacks.
Both spacecraft are small habitats atop a rocket (Falcon, or Boeing). Atlas V from Partner company ULA), protecting astronauts from the forces and dangers of traveling aboard giant rockets into the hostile environment of space. Both of these capsules are about the size of a large SUV, can accommodate up to seven astronauts, and are designed to dock with the ISS. It is also equipped with a parachute to glide passengers to land safely on Earth.
Despite some hiccups, Starliner completed unmanned test flights in 2021 and 2022. Its first unmanned experiment in Earth orbit. Some software issues have occurredProblems with small mechanical parts such as valves have plagued the project since 2021, preventing the capsule from reaching the ISS at all. Successful completion in 2022 It became clear that further improvements were needed.
Although these bugs appear to have been successfully ironed out, Starliner is now about to begin its first manned test featuring astronauts. Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita “Suni” WilliamsThe two are experienced Navy pilots who have already completed several trips to the ISS, totaling more than 400 days in space. They will travel 24 hours to the ISS, stay for a week to complete additional tests on the capsule, and then return to Earth by landing somewhere in the western United States.
of Goal of this test flight Basically, it’s about making sure everything works as expected: the spacesuit, life support systems, thrusters, docking hardware, communications, astronaut seats and safety features, landing parachutes, and more. They also plan to conduct special tests within the ISS to prove that the capsule can be used as a “safe haven” in the event of a catastrophe within the ISS (although the space station is at least Earth is not an option at the moment).
Unfortunately, all of these goals are currently on hold as the mission team works out the remaining kinks. The flight was initially delayed due to a malfunctioning valve in the liquid oxygen fuel tank.Immediately after the valve was replaced, Delayed again due to helium leak In another part of the craft. Just a few days ago NASA announced in press release “Additional time to review the spacecraft completion process and flight rationale” will “enable the team to further evaluate a small helium leak in the service module of the Boeing Starliner spacecraft.” .
On the surface, it may seem strange that such a huge company, which has poured years of research and development into this project, would have so many complex issues. But that leaves out one important piece of information. Space travel is really difficult anyway. All the systems being built for this kind of exploration are almost the first of their kind, and when lives are at stake, we need to make sure that before we send people on this perilous journey. You want to be as sure as possible that everything is perfect and going according to plan.
Compared to the few dozen manned space missions we have completed to date, there are billions of cars on Earth, and tens of thousands of man-made aircraft. Even with these well-tested, commonplace technologies, problems often occur. We all know the experience of the check engine light going off in your car when you least expect it. Now imagine that the light comes on when you are away from the mechanic for days, and you can’t leave your car even if it burns up. That’s space travel.
As Kennedy said in his famous Apollo-era speech, we try to do things in space “not just because they are easy, but because they are hard.” The Atlas V rocket for NASA’s current difficult effort is still on the launch pad, and Wilmore and Williams are ready to go when Starliner is ready. As with most NASA milestones, you can: Watch on NASA’s YouTube and other streaming channels.If this launch goes ahead, it will mark another important step in establishing the company’s presence beyond Earth, paving the way for the first non-test flight of Starliner 1 in 2025 and certifying Boeing as a trusted launch provider for NASA’s future efforts to the ISS, the Moon and perhaps beyond.
Updated May 22, 2024: Further delays to the mission were noted above.
