Will it take months for Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore to return from ISS? Know what NASA and Boeing have planned

When will astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore return to the Earth? Will it take months? They piloted the inaugural crewed test flight of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. The mission was originally projected to last only for a few days, the astronauts have already spent more than three weeks and yet no one knows when it will end. They are aboard the International Space Station (ISS) orbiting the Earth some 400km or 250 miles above it.

Glitches in Boeing Starliner

The two astronauts piloted the Boeing Starliner capsule that was launched from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on June 5. The starliner faced certain technical glitches even before the launch, a previous launch attempt scheduled for June 1 was canceled after a ground control computer was detected performing not well.

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Boeing Starliner: Helium leaked, thrusters failed

The spacecraft leaked helium gas, and its thruster malfunctioned even before it could reach the ISS. When it tried to dock with the ISS on June 6, four more of its 28 thrusters developed problems.

Will Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore stay at ISS for 90 days?

CNN has reported that Steve Stich, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program Manager announced Friday that NASA is mulling the idea of extending the maximum length of Starliner’s mission from 45 days to 90 days.

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Boeing and NASA plan experiment

Meanwhile, four of the five failed thrusters on Starliner have been restored and only one out of 28 thrusters is offline at present. But Boeing and NASA want to experiment in New Mexico to better understand why the thrusters unexpectedly failed during the first leg of its journey. Stich and Vice President and program manager of the Commercial Crew Program for Boeing, Mark Nappi, have said that they still don't know how and why the thrusters failed unexpectedly.

FAQs:

What problems did the Boeing Starliner face?
Boeing Starliner leaked helium gas, its thruster witnessed malfunctioning even before it could reach the ISS. When it tried to dock with the ISS on June 6, four more of its 28 thrusters developed problems.

What have NASA and Boeing planned?
Boeing and NASA have planned to experiment in New Mexico to better understand why the thrusters unexpectedly failed during the first leg of their journey.