Despite several delays and technical issues, Boeing is preparing to conduct its first crewed test flight to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of an agreement with NASA.
Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 12:25 pm ET on Saturday, June 1. The crew capsule will be mounted on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, carrying NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to and from the space station.
NASA will broadcast the launch live on its official website website and the space agency’s YouTube channel, or you can listen via the feed below. The conference will begin at 8:15 a.m. Eastern Time. Boeing will also broadcast the launch live through its website.
It’s been a tough journey to get to this point, and frankly, the upcoming launch makes us very anxious. The company originally planned to launch Starliner on May 6, but at the last minute, a pressure valve on the Atlas V rocket experienced an abnormality. Manned test flight postponed to May 17. However, just days before launch, the Starliner team Small helium leak detected in the spacecraft’s service module, prompting them to postpone the launch to May 21 and then indefinitely.
Earlier this week, Boeing announced its decision to continue flying astronauts on the leaked Starliner spacecraft without resolving the problem. AFP Boeing Vice President Mark Nappi said that solving the leak problem requires dismantling the Starliner spacecraft at its factory report. Instead, the Starliner team will monitor the leak ahead of Saturday’s launch.
Boeing’s manned flight test Part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, designed to transport crew and cargo between the International Space Station (ISS) $4.3 billion Sign a contract with the aerospace agency. Another commercial partner of NASA, SpaceX, just sent its eighth astronaut to the space station.
Starliner’s first unmanned test flight in 2019 managed to reach space, but a software automation glitch caused the spacecraft to burn excess fuel, preventing it from reaching the International Space Station. Starliner incorrectly calculated its position in space due to a glitch caused by a faulty mission timer.
The failure of the first flight prompted NASA to request a second test flight of the spacecraft before the crew could board the spacecraft. In May 2022, Boeing completed Orbital Flight Test 2 (OFT-2)It was Starliner’s second unmanned test flight, laying the foundation for manned test flights. But OFT-2 encountered some problems, including Thruster failure for orbital maneuvering.
Boeing’s crewed Starliner launch was initially scheduled for February 2023, then postponed to late April and finally rescheduled for July 21, 2023. Exit from launch attempt Addressing newly discovered issues with crew vehicles, including having to manually remove a mile of flammable tape.
Despite all these failures, NASA remains committed to the Starliner program and has two commercial partners to transport astronauts to low Earth orbit. Saturday’s launch is a major test of NASA’s relationship with its entourage of private companies amid leaks from the spacecraft.
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