Modern Flying Space

NASA Reveals Mission Timeline for Crewless Starliner Return

The space agency outlined its spacecraft salvage operation as astronauts are forced to stay at ISS another six months.

Caleb Revill

Friday, September 06, 2024 at 10:20 AM ET

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Edited By: tccjeremy

Boeing’s Starliner capsule has been docked to the International Space Station since June 6. [Courtesy: NASA]

Key Takeaways:

NASA's uncrewed Boeing Starliner is scheduled for an autonomous return to Earth on Friday, following an extended mission to the International Space Station.
The mission was extended due to Starliner thruster malfunctions, resulting in two astronauts, Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams, remaining on the ISS for eight months; they will return via a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft in February.
As the first American capsule designed for land touchdown, Starliner's return requires strict weather conditions and involves a multi-stage re-entry and recovery process at one of several designated U.S. Southwest landing sites.

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NASA has announced its mission timeline for the uncrewed Boeing Starliner spacecraft to depart from the International Space Station and return autonomously to Earth on Friday.

This comes after a weeklong mission to the ISS extended into an eight-month nightmare for two astronauts after the Starliner experienced thruster malfunctions during the trip to space. Since their blastoff on June 5, NASA astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita “Suni” Williams have been staying on the ISS alongside the Expedition 71 crew.

Caleb Revill

Caleb Revill is a journalist, writer and lifelong learner working as a Junior Writer for Firecrown. When he isn't tackling breaking news, Caleb is on the lookout for fascinating feature stories.