The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has shared an update on the first crewed launch of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS). The US space agency said the launch has been delayed again, adding that June 1 is now the likely new launch date. This was the third delay of the first astronaut launch, which was scheduled to carry Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams on a week-long trip to the ISS.
A statement released by NASA said, “Teams are now working toward a launch opportunity on Saturday, June 1 at 12:25 p.m. ET, with additional launches on Sunday, June 2, Wednesday, June 5, and Thursday, June 6.” There will be launch opportunities in June as well.”
NASA and Boeing Co. are targeting June 1 for the first crewed launch of the Starliner spacecraft as engineers investigate the cause of the helium leak and how it affected critical parts of the mission, the agency said. Can influence.
“Extraordinary analysis and testing has been performed over the past two weeks by the joint NASA, Boeing and ULA teams to replace the Centaur self-regulating valve and troubleshoot the Starliner service module helium manifold leak,” said Steve Stich, manager of the NASA Commercial Crew Program.
Earlier this month, the Starliner launch was postponed just hours before liftoff due to a different technical problem, with astronauts already stranded. Then last week, another delay was announced to allow teams to further assess a helium leak associated with the service module, which is located at the top of the rocket.
“Work is ongoing to assess Starliner’s performance and redundancy following the discovery of a small helium leak in the spacecraft’s service module,” the space agency said in a statement.
The postponement comes as the Starliner program has been delayed for years, and it comes at a challenging time for Boeing, which also faces safety questions regarding its commercial aviation arm.
For NASA, the success of the Starliner mission is crucial in certifying a second commercial vehicle to carry crew to the International Space Station. SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, achieved this feat in 2020 with its Dragon capsule, effectively breaking nearly a decade of reliance on Russian rockets following the conclusion of the Space Shuttle program.
(With inputs from AFP, Reuters)
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Published: May 23, 2024, 08:48 AM IST
