NASA astronauts unexpectedly spend the 4th of July on the International Space Station

Astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore spent a surprise Fourth of July aboard the International Space Station, but it wasn't a patriotic display of engineering prowess.

The two NASA astronauts docked with the orbiting lab on June 6 for what was supposed to be an eight-day mission, but their return home could be delayed for months in what has become a star test flight for Boeing's new Starliner capsule.

Not only was the launch of the spacecraft with astronauts on board for the first time repeatedly delayed due to numerous problems, but NASA and Boeing are taking a cautious approach in returning the pair to Earth mainly because of the five thrusters that did not work during docking.

Four of the small engines that drive the shuttle into space are now working properly, but engineers don't have a clear understanding of what caused the shutdown, so they've decided to conduct ground tests at NASA's test facility White Sands in New Mexico, NASA. officials said. The tests will put a Starliner thruster through its paces in a repetitive space environment.

The delay will also allow engineers to further study a helium leak in the capsule's propulsion system that was first detected before launch and worsened as the Starliner reached the space station roughly 250 miles above Earth. The gas is used to pressurize the Starliner's propulsion system.

However, the company and the space agency emphasized in a press conference earlier this week that the astronauts are not trapped in space and, if necessary, they can board the Starliner and immediately return to Earth if there is an emergency in aboard the space station.

“We are not stuck on the ISS. The crew is in no danger and there is no added danger when we decide to return Suni and Butch to Earth,” said Mark Nappi, manager of Boeing's Commercial Crew Program.

Ken Bowersox, an associate administrator at NASA, said the delay will allow more data to be collected and that there is no rush to bring the astronauts back. “We have the luxury of time.

Before launch, NASA had said the batteries aboard the Starliner were rated for 45 days, but during the press conference they indicated they were performing well and would be rated to last another 45 days. On regular missions to service the station, the Starliner would remain docked for six months.

NASA and Boeing also won't have a chance to examine the thrusters or investigate the helium leak when Starliner returns as the propulsion system is jettisoned before returning to Earth.

However, the desire to conduct ground tests that are expected to last for weeks has again highlighted how far Arlington, Virginia-based Boeing, the world's largest aerospace company, has fallen behind Hawthorne startup SpaceX. Elon Musk at least in the program to service the space station.

Both companies were awarded multibillion-dollar contracts in 2014 to develop their crafts, and as of 2020, Elon Musk's Hawthorne company has transported more than half a dozen crews in its Crew Dragon capsule to the station while Boeing has managed only two distance flights, including a first that failed to reach orbit and a second in May 2022 that docked with the orbiting laboratory.

The current mission with astronauts on board was scheduled to launch last year, but was delayed by the need to replace the widely used combustible ribbon on the Starliner and a second problem with the parachute system that will slow its descent for a landfall in the Southwest.

Then, this year's May 6 launch date was repeatedly delayed, initially due to a valve malfunction in the Atlas V rocket that launches the Starliner into space. The workhorse rocket is manufactured by United Launch Alliance, a joint venture of Boeing and Lockheed Martin.

Additional launch dates were missed due to a helium leak, believed to be caused by a single faulty seal, so software fixes were developed to work around it, but then additional leaks developed after launch. However, NASA and Boeing officials say the spacecraft has 10 times more helium than it needs to return to Earth.

Boeing has reportedly had to absorb $1.5 billion in Starliner cost overruns, even as it continues to deal with fallout from two crashes of its 737 Max 8 jets in 2018 and 2019.

The company is weighing whether to plead guilty to a fraud charge related to allegations it misled regulators who approved the new, larger version of the 737, including how much flight training pilots would need, according to the Associated Press.

Boeing also announced plans this week to buy Spirit AeroSystems, a major supplier it spun off in 2005 as it moved to shift more work to its commercial jets. Spirit supplied the fuselage of Alaska Airline Max 9 that experienced a panel explosion on Jan. 5 en route to Ontario International Airport in San Bernardino County. Boeing's chief executive called the acquisition “in the best interest of the flying public.”

Meanwhile, SpaceX last month was awarded an $843 million NASA contract to build a spacecraft to carry the International Space Station out of orbit so it can burn up in the atmosphere when it retires in 2030.

Bloomberg reported last month that the privately held company is now valued at a record $210 billion after a company tender offer to insiders priced the stock at $112.

If the Starliner is certified, decommissioning the space station would leave the shuttle with only a handful of scheduled service flights, prompting speculation that Boeing may end the program.

However, the company says it has plans for the Starliner to serve the Orbital Reef space station being developed by Jeff Bezos' space company Blue Origin.

2024 Los Angeles Times. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.