Technical problems involving thrusters and helium leaks delayed both the docking of Boeing’s Starliner and its departure from the ISS
A Starliner capsulefrom the Boeinghe’s still inside International Space Station (ISS), having arrived successfully despite delays, leaving two scientists carrying out experiments at its destination. Now, however, there are delays in the match, which was supposed to take place on June 14th. Problems in orbit pushed the date forward, with arrival scheduled for June 26.
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This means that instead of eight days, experienced astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams will spend 20 days on the ISS, as confirmed by Boeing and NASA last Tuesday (18th). According to Steve Stich, of the American space agency, the date was postponed to give the team more time to analyze the capsule’s data, ensuring a safer return for the crew.
Starliner technical problems
In the first crewed mission of Starliner, held in early June, some technical problems worried the engineers responsible, in particular helium leaks in the propulsion system. During docking, some thrusters also failed, preventing the Boeing capsule from rendezvousing with the capsule ISS.
Four of the five problematic thrusters were repaired by the astronaut pair, but one of them remained disconnected and the company’s engineers decided to leave it that way. Starliner has 28 thrusters in total, so the failure of just one should not compromise the mission.
The team is also confident that the helium loss it will not adversely affect the functions of the capsule during return, although the cause of the problem is still unknown. The extra time to analyze problems comes, in part, from the fact that the thrusters are located in the ship’s service module, which burns in the air. atmosphere during the return.
After all the checks – and if no further problems are identified – the capsule should be released on June 25, to arrive at the White Sands Test Facility, in the US state of New Mexico, the following day. If another delay occurs, the next return window should not arrive until July 2nd.
Source: space
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Source: Terra
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