Stuck in orbit, no good news from NASA. Astronauts are waiting crammed into the ISS

NASA still doesn’t know what to do with two astronauts who flew to the International on June 5 (they have been on site since June 6). It was a test mission that was supposed to last eight days. Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams were testing a manned flight on the new spacecraft, but the Boeing Starliner was hit by technical problems and now experts they are not convinced that it would be safe to return it to Earth for people.

What are the options?

The US space agency holds a weekly press conference to announce further steps in the matter – and so far, that Starliner astronauts will still have to stay on the International Space Station (ISS). Now, NASA has said basically the same thing again: discussions are ongoing whether to send them home aboard a Boeing Starliner capsule or ask SpaceX for help.

This second variant has a rather significant disadvantage – the capsule. Crew Dragon by SpaceX will probably dock with the ISS at the end of September (this mission has been delayed), and will return to Earth only in February. That would mean Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams eight months in orbit – instead of the initially planned eight days. In addition, their spacesuits are adapted to the Starliner capsule, they will not be able to be used in the Dragon.

NASA still believes that it will be possible to use the Boeing spacecraft, although one might get the impression that this belief is already somewhat weakened. Officials are unable to provide an exact date for a decision on this matter, although we (and especially the astronauts) are supposed to know it by the end of this month, perhaps as early as the end of next week.

Why might Starliner be dangerous?

The Starliner being tested started having problems while still on its way to the space station. to the helium leak in the drive system, some engines turned off. Fortunately, we managed to dock safely with the station. The problem is that it is not known for sure why this failure occurred and whether it could pose a threat to the astronauts during the return flight.

The Starliner is designed in such a way that the crew capsule itself is reusable, but the service module, which houses the engines, it will burn on entering the atmosphere. So it will not be possible to check on Earth where the technical problems came from. NASA is therefore analyzing all the readings and data it can collect. At the last press conference, the question was asked whether astronauts could not go into space and check the situation from the outside, but this option was rejected by NASA.

A difficult mission

At the same (Wednesday) conference, NASA representatives reported that the two astronauts were “feeling great”. It was emphasized that they are veterans, prepared for such unexpected situations during space missions. However, according to the “Time” journalist, it may not be very easy for them. First, they have already done everything they could do as part of their mission. Now they are to help the ISS crew by doing odd jobs.

Due to the fact that their mission was supposed to be very short, it was not considered a problem that they might not be able to easily fit in. There are usually six or seven people on the ISS, now there are nine of them. The same journalist from “Time” reported that there is no room for them in the sleeping cabins – where everyone is provided with a bed, equipment (laptops), storage space. There are six such cabins. This means that one of the astronauts, who had already stayed on the station, drew a place in the alternative sleeping space (CASA – Crew Alternate Sleep Accommodation), where conditions are slightly worse. Suni Williams also ended up in such a place. Butch Wilmore, on the other hand, sleeps in a sleeping bag (like at a campsite – this is how “Time” compares it) in the module of the Japanese space agency.

Why is Starliner so important?

Starliner is also running out of time. The capsule’s batteries are designed to hold power for 45 days, so for about two weeks now they have had to be powered from space. But sooner or later they will stop working anyway. So Starliner has to be brought back to Earth – with or without astronauts on board – as quickly as possible.

This is an important project for NASA, because since 2020, American (and not only) astronauts have been reaching the International Space Station only in capsules from SpaceX, a private company owned by Elon Musk. The American agency needs an alternative, and relying on a single external contractor is risky to some extent.

This is also an important – and at the same time problematic – program for Boeing. The giant fought for a contract with NASA, and ultimately received $4.2 billion to build such a ship. However, the costs exceeded this amount by $1.5 billion. In addition, Starliner had huge delays and finally flew its first flight only seven years after the originally planned date (although this is not so unusual in this industry, Elon Musk is also regularly late with fulfilling promises). If NASA decided to use Dragon to deliver two astronauts to Earth, it would be a blow to Boeing’s image.

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