Data sheet on the Boeing Starliner spacecraft, launched Thursday for the International Space Station.
Boeing’s Starliner capsule returned to Earth on Wednesday in the final step of a key unmanned test flight to prove it worthy of providing trips to NASA astronauts on the International Space Station.
The rubber drop-shaped spacecraft landed in the sand at 4:49 pm local time (2249 GMT) in the New Mexico desert, ending a crucial six-day mission to restore Boeing’s reputation after past failures.
The orbital flight test-2 (OFT-2) was the last obstacle that Starliner overcame before transporting humans on another test flight that should take place later this year. If successful, the spacecraft will begin regular service.
“We really have the manned flight test in our approach,” he added.
Both companies were awarded fixed-price contracts – $ 4.2 billion to Boeing and $ 2.6 billion to SpaceX – in 2014, shortly after the end of the space shuttle program, during a time when the United States depended on rockets. Russian soybeans for travel. in the ISS.
Starliner docked at the Orbital Outpost on Friday, a day after leaving the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The spacecraft carried more than 600 pounds (270 kilograms) of cargo, including tanks that provide breathable air to the station’s crew members, which will be renovated and collected on a future flight.
After losing most of his speed, he deployed a sequence of parachutes that culminated in his three giant red, white, and blue main slides. At 3,000 feet (915 meters), he launched his base heat shield, revealing inflated air cushions to aid a smooth landing.
At first, two thrusters responsible for placing Starliner in a stable orbit failed, although officials insisted there was a lot of redundancy built into the system to overcome the problem.
After landing, recovery crews detected hydrazine vapor around Starliner and had to retreat until it was cleared. Stich later explained that this sometimes happens when a spacecraft does not burn all of its propellant and there was no evidence of a leak.
Overall, the errors were minor compared to the problems Starliner saw during its first test release, in 2019, when a software error caused it to burn too much fuel to reach its destination, and another almost meant that the vehicle was destroyed during re-entry.
Boeing and NASA also attempted to launch Starliner in August 2021, but the capsule was removed from the launch pad to deal with the sticky valves that did not open as they should.
“There’s a lot of excitement,” said Boeing’s Mark Nappi. “(I’m) very happy for this team of people who have been working on this for years and are waiting for it today.”
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Originally released as a Boeing Starliner, it completes the key test mission to the ISS, with a few hiccups