Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams launched into space Wednesday aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft is currently undergoing its first crewed test flight to the International Space Station, but is experiencing a helium leak ahead of its docking on Thursday afternoon.
The United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, carrying a Boeing CST-100 Starliner spacecraft, lifted off at 10:52 a.m. Wednesday from Cape Canaveral Space Station in Florida. NASA astronauts Suni Williams, 58, and Barry “Batch” Wilmore, 61, were on board.
“Teams identified three helium leaks on the spacecraft,” NASA’s Johnson Space Center tweeted just 12 hours after launch. “One of the leaks was discussed pre-flight with a management plan. The other two were new after the spacecraft was in orbit. Two of the affected helium valves have been closed and the spacecraft is stable.”
Despite the leak, Starliner “remains on track for docking at 12:15 p.m. ET on Thursday,” the ISS X account said, adding that NASA and Boeing teams “will meet to review data prior to rendezvous and docking operations at the orbital base.”
Boeing Starliner launches two NASA astronauts into space on first crewed test flight
Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft lifts off from Space Launch Complex 41 aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket during NASA’s Boeing Crewed Flight Test at Cape Canaveral, Florida, on June 5, 2024. (Joe Raedl/Getty Images/Getty Images)
After docking, Wilmore and Williams will stay on the ISS for about a week “testing the Starliner spacecraft and its subsystems.” NASA Activities NASA announced that it is “completing final certification of the transportation system for a rotating mission to an orbiting laboratory as part of the Commercial Crew Program.”
Wednesday’s launch was the third attempt in about a month to safely enter the spacecraft’s atmosphere.
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The mission, involving Boeing and NASA, sent two astronauts to the International Space Station. (Joe Raedl/Getty Images/Getty Images)
The second launch attempt of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft was aborted on Saturday, just four minutes before NASA’s scheduled liftoff. Kennedy Space Center The ground system computer issued an automatic abort command, halting the launch sequence.
The first launch took place on May 6. NASA, Boeing and ULA abandoned the opportunity “due to a malfunction of the oxygen relief valve on the Centaur second stage of the Atlas V rocket,” according to a recommendation about the launch attempt.
NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test commander Butch Wilmore, left, and pilot Suni Williams exit the Operations and Checkout Building in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on June 5, 2024. (Joe Raedl/Getty Images/Getty Images)
| Ticker | safety | last | change | change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BA | Boeing | 189.77 | +1.14 | +0.60% |
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Since the retirement of the Space Shuttle, NASA has partnered with Boeing and SpaceX to send astronauts into space. Wednesday’s launch marked Boeing’s first successful crewed mission, while SpaceX has been launching astronauts into space since 2020.
“Boeing’s Starliner writes a new chapter in American space exploration,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a statement. “Humored spaceflight is a bold mission, but one that’s worth undertaking. This is an exciting time for NASA, our commercial partners and the future of space exploration. Go Starliner! Go Butch and Suni!”
