NASA is facing a dilemma over the fate of astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who may be forced to stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS) due to technical problems with Boeing's Starliner capsule. Originally, the plan was for the test pilots to return to Earth after a week, but now, propulsion failures and helium leaks have called the ship's safety into question.
In this scenario, NASA is considering the possibility of Willmore and Williams returning on the next SpaceX flight, which will stay at the station until February of next year. In the meantime, the Starliner could be returned without a crew to avoid any additional danger to the astronauts.
Uncomfortable situation aboard the ISS
As for the day-to-day life of astronauts, the situation aboard the ISS is, to say the least, uncomfortable. With nine astronauts in a space designed for six or seven people, Wilmore and Williams had to adapt to sleep under ideal conditions: As reported time, Williams shares a small sleeping room with another astronaut, while Wilmore sleeps in a sleeping bag on the Kibo module of the Japanese space agency.
Additionally, their long stays forced the astronauts to stretch out their clothes, a problem that was only recently solved when a resupply vehicle provided them with clean clothes. As for their tasks, while the Starliner's main tasks have already been completed, they assist with routine repairs such as scientific experiments and fixing the urine processing pump.
Despite these challenges, astronauts maintain a positive attitude. “We're very happy here on the ISS,” Williams said in July, though uncertainty about his return to Earth is palpable.
NASA is evaluating the data and considering its options
NASA officials said they will analyze more data before making a decision late next week or early next week. These thrusters are critical to keeping the capsule in position when it's time to de-orbit.
“We have time on our hands before we can bring Starliner home, and we want to use that time wisely,” said Ken Bowersachs, NASA's space operations mission chief. NASA security chief Russ DeLoach added: “We don't have enough knowledge and data to make any kind of simple, black-and-white calculations.”
DeLoach said the space agency wants to accommodate all opinions when dissenting opinions are ignored, like the two NASA shuttle tragedies Challenger and Columbia.
“That means, sometimes, we're not moving too fast because we're bringing everything out, and I think you can see that play out a little bit here,” he said.
The transition to SpaceX would require moving two of the four astronauts currently assigned to the next shuttle flight, scheduled for late September. Willmore and Williams will occupy empty seats on SpaceX's Dragon capsule after that half-year mission.
Another problem
The space station only has two parking spaces for American capsules, so the Boeing capsule must leave before SpaceX's Dragon arrives to free up the space.
Boeing says Starliner can bring astronauts home safely Earlier this month, the company released a list of tests conducted with the boosters in space and on the ground since launch.
NASA intends to keep the current SpaceX team there until it is replaced, barring an emergency. Those four crew members were supposed to return to Earth this month, but uncertainty about the Starliner added a seventh month to their mission, keeping them there until the end of September. Most space stations last six months, although some have lasted a full year.
“That's your job as astronauts.”
Wilmore and Williams are retired Navy captains who spent several months on the space station years ago. They immediately got to work at the station, helping with experiments and repairs.
“They'll do what we say. That's their job as astronauts,” said NASA's chief astronaut Joe Hayes. “This mission is a test flight, and as Butch and Suni revealed before launch, they knew this mission wasn't going to be perfect,” he added.
Interested in competing services and backup options, NASA hired SpaceX and Boeing to carry astronauts to the space station after the shuttles were retired in 2011.
SpaceX's first space flight was in 2020. Boeing had so many problems with its initial uncrewed test flight in 2019 that it was ordered to repeat. Then more problems arose, costing the company more than $1 billion before it could finally fly astronauts.
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