Boeing Starliner Safety Not Confirmed, Two NASA Astronauts to Return to Earth with SpaceX

The United States space agency, NASA, confirmed on Saturday, August 25, that the Boeing Starliner capsule, which took two astronauts to the space station about 80 days ago, has technical issues and is unable to bring them back to Earth. According to NASA, due to the low safety of the Boeing Starliner, it was decided that this spacecraft would return to Earth uncrewed, and the two stranded astronauts are likely to return in February 2025 aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule. This decision was made after NASA's assessments regarding the safety of the Starliner and uncertainty about its thrusters. The Starliner, which carried crew members Sony Williams and Butch Wilmore to the space station in early June during its first crewed test flight, has faced helium leaks and its thrusters have failed. The first flight of the American company Boeing with two astronauts arrived at the International Space Station on June 7. When Butch Wilmore and Sony Williams embarked on this journey, they expected to stay at the International Space Station for a short time. Their entire mission was planned for about a week, but a series of leaks and malfunctions caused NASA to delay their return. Boeing signed a $4.2 billion contract with NASA in 2014 to build the Starliner, which was supposed to regularly transport astronauts to the International Space Station over a decade. The first uncrewed test flight of the Starliner took place in 2019, which encountered some software issues. In 2022, the second operation went better, but other problems arose, including with the parachute. The launch on June 5, 2024, was Boeing's third attempt, this time with astronauts, which followed a series of issues related to the rocket. Meanwhile, Boeing's competitor, SpaceX, has conducted several regular flights to the space station. There are only two terminals at the space station that can accommodate American astronauts' capsules, both of which are currently occupied, so one must be vacated before the next crew arrives. Russia has its own parking spots for Soyuz spacecraft. The Starliner spacecraft has failed its return mission, leaving two NASA astronauts "stranded" in space; the return to Earth: perhaps next winter. The one-week journey of NASA astronauts has been extended at least until the end of summer due to issues with the Boeing spacecraft. NASA astronauts reached their destination with Boeing's first space flight. After a long delay, Boeing finally successfully completed its first space flight. Boeing's first space flight, which had been delayed for a long time, was also canceled at the last moment due to a computer issue. The Boeing spacecraft was launched towards the International Space Station with a dummy. NASA's renewed efforts to realize the dream of human space travel.