Boeing Co.’s Starliner spacecraft, which launched last week after several delays, will stay longer at the International Space Station to undergo additional testing, NASA said Friday.
Boeing and NASA Initially planned The Calypso spacecraft is expected to stay in space for about nine days, and flight commander Butch Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams plan to remain aboard the space station until at least June 22, according to NASA.
“We continue to understand Starliner’s capabilities as we prepare for our long-term goal of docking with the space station for six months,” Steve Stich, NASA’s commercial crew program manager, wrote Friday in a blog post announcing the mission extension. “The crew will conduct additional hatch maneuvers to better understand handling, repeat several ‘safe zone’ tests, and evaluate maneuvers using the forward window.”
According to NASA, these tests will include operating the capsule’s hatch, firing its seven thrusters and checking the cabin temperature.
“We have an incredible opportunity to spend more time aboard the space station and conduct more tests, which will provide valuable data that is unique to our position,” Mark Nappi, vice president and manager of Boeing’s Commercial Crew Programs, said in the same blog post. “As the NASA and Boeing integrated team has said every step of the way, we have ample room and time aboard the space station to maximize the opportunity for all partners, including our crew, to learn.”
The extension effectively doubles the mission’s duration after the manned test flight was postponed twice in May due to a helium leak and a valve problem. A computer malfunction forced the mission to be postponed again just before the scheduled launch on June 1.
After successfully launching into space on June 5, the capsule encountered further leaks while attempting to dock with the station. Four of the Boeing capsule’s 28 thrusters also shut down before it was finally able to dock.
The test flight is one of Boeing’s final important steps to gain certification before it can begin regular crewed transport to the International Space Station. The mission comes after years of glitches and delays, including a failed uncrewed test in 2019 when the spacecraft couldn’t dock with the station.
The mission will be the first of its kind for a U.S. or private company to carry a female astronaut aboard. The two astronauts completed a significant amount of testing during their time at the space station, NASA said in a statement.
Boeing has been working on the project for more than a decade, and the capsule was once seen as a competitor to SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft, but SpaceX sent its first astronauts to the space station in 2020 and has completed at least nine crewed missions since then.
NASA initially awarded SpaceX $2.6 billion and Boeing $4 billion for their space programs.
