This week in Space: Starliner returns to Earth and Polaris Dawn tries again (2024)

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER — NASA gave space fans some information on the return of the empty Starliner as many are eyeing the launch date of SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission.

What You Need To Know

  • Starliner will return without its crew
  • No confirmed date for the Polaris Dawn mission
  • Get more space coverage here

  • 🔻Look at the interactive timeline of the Starliner mission🔻

Starliner returns without a crew

During a press conference on Wednesday, NASA officials gave a recap of the return of Boeing’s Starliner capsule. On its first crewed maiden mission, the Starliner christen Calypso encountered issues with helium leaks that impacted the service module’s five aft reaction control system maneuvering thrusters.

(Scroll down to view an interactive timeline of events)

Although NASA officials stated the leaks have not worsened and tests to the thrusters have been successful, there was no way of determining if all the systems would operate as they should during a landing with the crew inside Starliner.

Last week, NASA released plans on how it will return the Starliner without its human crew.

NASA astronauts Cmdr. Barry “Butch” Wilmore and pilot Sunita “Suni” Williams were sent up in the Calypso in June of this year and while they were expected to stay for about a week on the International Space Station, the ongoing problems forced NASA to change how the pair will return to Earth.

Williams and Wilmore will now hitch a ride in SpaceX’s Dragon space capsule on the Crew-9 mission in February 2025 when it returns home. Originally, Crew-9 was supposed to have four members, but NASA whittled that down to two to make room for Wilmore and Williams. The mission is currently set to launch on Sept. 24.

On Wednesday, NASA Kennedy Space Center’s Commercial Crew Program Manager Steve Stich explained that on Friday at around 6:04 p.m. ET, the Starliner will undock from the station’s Harmony module and after about a six-hour journey, it will reach the landing zone at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico at approximately 12:03 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 7.

NASA Johnson Space Center’s International Space Station Manager Dana Weigel said as Starliner undocks from the ISS, there will be a breakout burn that will send the capsule over and away from the station.

Stich added that there should be no issues during undocking that should impact the ISS.

Both NASA and Boeing teams will work together during the undocking and landing of Starliner as they have already been going over simulations of what to expect, said Anthony Vareha, the International Space Station’s flight director.

Five of the Starliner’s aft reaction control system thrusters that were used to maneuver the craft to the ISS failed before docking in June. After a hot-fire test, four of the five were re-selected, leaving the fifth one off. If the thrusters do not fire, springs that are connected between Starliner and the station will unhook and push Starliner away, said Vareha.

The other thrusters on the module will be fired during timed moments to get the capsule in the right attitude as it will return to Earth. The service module will detach itself from the capsule and burn up during re-entry.

While Starliner will not bring its crew home, it will not be returning empty handed as it will return rechargeable oxygen tanks, other materials and the Starliner spacesuits, explained Weigel.

The Starliner spacesuits are not compatible with SpaceX’s Dragon capsule. The ISS has one extra Dragon suit that Williams can fit into and during the Crew-9 mission, a spare suit will be sent up for Wilmore.

Once the Starliner has returned to Earth, Stich said teams will go over it and the data collected by onboard instruments, among others, to see what went wrong and what type of improvements can be made.

He said to Spectrum News that the teams have been so focused on returning Starliner and its crew that they have not had the chance to think about the official crewed Boeing Starliner 1 mission, which is set to launch in August 2025.

But he said the teams will determine how to certify the crewed mission.

Retired scientist Ken Kremer with SpaceUpClose.com says it would be too risky to send the astronauts home on a spacecraft after so many problems.

"I think it’s a good decision, NASA doesn’t want a repeat of Challenger and Columbia, it was a close call. There were arguments on both sides, but in the end they thought why take a chance," he said.

(Spectrum News reporter Greg Pallone contributed to this report. See attached video for more.)

Polaris Dawn launches mission that will see firsts

But before that happens, the FAA reported that SpaceX is expected to launch the Polaris Program’s first Polaris Dawn mission early Friday morning.

However, Polaris Program’s Public Relations Director Sarah Grover told Spectrum News on Tuesday, “… I can tell you that we don’t have a launch date at the present time. The team is monitoring the weather daily and when we have a launch window, we will post on our X account.“

It was supposed to take off twice last week, but a helium leak and weather forced the scrub of the launch.

When it does take off from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center, Cmdr. Jared Isaacman, pilot Scott “Kidd” Poteet and SpaceX lead space operations engineers Anna Menon and Sarah Gillis will be conducting a number of firsts, from the furthest planned orbit around Earth to doing the first commercial spacewalk.

All previous spacewalks have been done by space agencies like NASA.

Speaking of the spacewalk, it will be done in the new SpaceX spacesuit, also known as an extravehicular activity (EVA).

Poteet spoke with Spectrum News about what the spacesuits will be like and shared more about the mission.

This week in Space: Starliner returns to Earth and Polaris Dawn tries again (2024)

FAQs

This week in Space: Starliner returns to Earth and Polaris Dawn tries again? ›

This week in Space: Starliner returns to Earth empty and Polaris Dawn to try again. KENNEDY SPACE CENTER — NASA gave space fans some information on the return of the empty Starliner as many are eyeing the launch date of SpaceX's Polaris Dawn mission.

Did Starliner make it back to Earth today? ›

Starliner's long space odyssey is over. The Boeing capsule, named Calypso, returned to Earth early this morning (Sept. 7), touching down in the New Mexico desert at 12:01 a.m. EDT (0401 GMT; 11:01 p.m. local time on Sept. 6).

How long will it take Starliner to return to Earth? ›

The flight back lasted six hours. After it re-entered the Earth's atmosphere parachutes were used to slow its descent at the White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico on Saturday at 23:01 local time (05:01 GMT). Nasa said earlier that Butch and Suni were in good spirits and in regular contact with their families.

Where will Starliner land on Earth? ›

Boeing's Starliner spacecraft has landed in New Mexico, wrapping up a three-month test mission that faced technical issues and forced it to leave the two astronauts it carried temporarily stranded in space. The spacecraft touched down at White Sands Space Harbor in the New Mexico desert at 04:01 GMT on Saturday.

Why is Starliner returning without crew? ›

The landmark mission concluded with Starliner flying home empty from the International Space Station because NASA deemed the capsule too risky to carry the crew back to Earth. Crew members Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore are set to spend another five or six months on the orbiting laboratory.

Did Starliner return safely? ›

For the most part, the undocking and atmospheric re-entry of Starliner proceeded smoothly. So did the capsule's landing under parachutes at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico at 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on Saturday (10:01 p.m. Friday local time).

Is Starliner coming home? ›

Boeing's Starliner capsule returned from the International Space Station Friday evening — concluding its nearly three-month stay in space. But it flew back to Earth with an empty cabin, leaving behind two test pilots who must now remain on the station for another five or six months.

How long does it take for a rocket ship to get to the Moon from Earth? ›

It takes about 3 days for a spacecraft to reach the Moon. During that time a spacecraft travels at least 240,000 miles (386,400 kilometers) which is the distance between Earth and the Moon.

How long did it take for the astronauts to get back to Earth? ›

They jettisoned Eagle before they performed the maneuvers that propelled Columbia out of the last of its 30 lunar orbits onto a trajectory back to Earth. They returned to Earth and splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on July 24 after more than eight days in space.

Has Starliner left the ISS? ›

According to Nasa, the Starliner autonomously left its docking port at the ISS at just after 6pm ET to make the approximately six-hour journey home to a landing zone at White Sands Space Harbor in the New Mexico desert.

Which country has gone to space? ›

Only three nations (Soviet Union/Russia, U.S., China) have launched their own crewed spacecraft, with the Soviets/Russians and the American programs providing rides to other nations' astronauts. Twenty-eight "first flights" occurred on Soviet or Russian flights while the United States carried nineteen.

Where will NASA land on the moon? ›

Artemis 5 (2030)

After docking to the Gateway, two astronauts will board the Blue Moon lunar lander and fly it to the Lunar south pole to land near the Lunar Terrain Vehicle(LTV). This will be the first lunar landing since Apollo 17 to use an unpressurized lunar rover.

Does Starliner have a toilet? ›

Starliner is reusable, with Boeing saying it can be flown on up to 10 missions. The spacecraft sports no toilet—unlike Crew Dragon—and has about the same livable volume as an SUV, making for a relatively cozy rise to and from orbit.

Can Starliner be reused? ›

A 21st Century Space Capsule

For NASA service missions to the International Space Station, it will carry up to four NASA-sponsored crew members and time-critical scientific research. The Starliner has an innovative, weldless structure and is reusable up to 10 times with a six-month turnaround time.

How many thrusters does Starliner have? ›

“It was just too much risk with the crew, and so we decided to pursue the uncrewed path forward.”Related video below: 'She's happy in space;' astronaut's mission extended months beyond planDuring its perilous return to Earth, Starliner does have other types of thrusters meant to help the vehicle keep its orientation as ...

Did the Starliner land in New Mexico? ›

The beleaguered Starliner spacecraft, built by Boeing, successfully landed in New Mexico just after midnight Eastern time, ending a crucial test flight that proved to be a real headache for NASA.

Do spaceships land back on Earth? ›

A rocket's crew or cargo module typically returns to Earth by firing its thrusters to deorbit. Once in the atmosphere, parachutes deploy to land the craft. The first stages of modern rockets like the Falcon 9 use their thrusters to slow the vehicle down and deploy landing legs for touching down.

Why the Starliner spacecraft is important? ›

Part of NASA's commercial crew program, this long-delayed mission represents the vehicle's first crewed launch. Its success will give NASA – and in the future, space tourists – more options for getting to low Earth orbit.

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