Boeing's Starliner spacecraft landed uncrewed in a New Mexico desert late on Friday, concluding a three-month test mission marked by technical issues that caused the astronauts it had transported to the International Space Station to remain there until next year. NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who flew Starliner in June, stayed on the ISS as Starliner autonomously undocked at 6:04 p.m. ET (3.34 am IST) on Friday, initiating a six-hour journey back to Earth using thrusters that NASA deemed too risky for a crew last month.
Starliner returned to Earth without any apparent issues, as shown on a NASA live stream, successfully completing the crucial final phase of its mission.
The spacecraft reentered Earth's atmosphere at around 11 p.m. ET (8.30 am IST) at speeds of approximately 17,000 miles (27,400 km) per hour. About 45 minutes later, it deployed parachutes to slow its descent and inflated a set of airbags just before touching down at the White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico.
What next for Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams?
Although the mission was meant to be the final test flight before NASA certifies Starliner for routine missions, the decision to keep astronauts off the capsule last month due to safety concerns has raised uncertainty about the spacecraft's certification path, despite Boeing's successful return.
Wilmore and Williams, stocked with extra supplies on the ISS, are scheduled to return to Earth on a SpaceX vehicle in February 2025. What was initially intended to be an eight-day test has turned into an eight-month mission for the crew.
Wilmore and Williams are expected to continue conducting scientific experiments with their crewmates.
What went wrong with the Boeing Starliner?
Five of Starliner's 28 manoeuvring thrusters failed while Wilmore and Williams were on board during their approach to the ISS in June. Additionally, the same propulsion system experienced several helium leaks, which are used to pressurise the thrusters.
Despite successfully docking on June 6, the failures prompted a months-long investigation by Boeing, with input from NASA, resulting in a cost of USD 125 million for the company. This has brought the total cost overruns on the Starliner program to just over USD 1.6 billion since 2016, according to a Reuters analysis of securities filings.
Boeing's Starliner issues have persisted since the spacecraft failed a test trip to the ISS without a crew in 2019. Starliner performed a re-do mission in 2022 and largely succeeded, although some of its thrusters malfunctioned.
The aerospace giant's Starliner issues underscore its struggles in space, particularly with SpaceX offering cheaper launches for satellites and astronauts, reshaping the way NASA collaborates with private companies.
What next for Boeing Starliner?
Boeing will retrieve the Starliner capsule after its landing and continue its investigation into the thruster failures in space.
The section containing Starliner's thrusters, the "service module" trunk providing in-space manoeuvring capabilities, detached from the capsule as planned just before reentering Earth's atmosphere.
The service module, carrying the faulty thrusters, burned up in the atmosphere as intended. Boeing will rely on simulated tests to determine the cause of the hardware issues in space.
ALSO READ: Saturn rings to temporary disappear in 2025: Here's why
Inputs from Reuters
