Boeing and NASA teams on Thursday participated in a dress rehearsal to prepare for the planned landing of the uncrewed Boeing Starliner spacecraft at White Sands, N.M. The craft is scheduled to land at White Sands Missile Range’s Space Harbors shortly after midnight on Saturday. Photo by Aubrey Gemignani/NASA
NASA on Friday is making final preparations for the uncrewed return of the troubled Boeing Starliner from the International Space Station, with the undocking scheduled to begin shortly after 6 p.m. EDT.
The Starliner mission’s schedule was set out in a timeline issued by the space agency last week. Advertisement
In addition to the 6:04 p.m. autonomous undocking from the ISS, the program calls for Starliner to execute a deorbit burn, entry and targeted landing of the capsule. The landing at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico is set for 12:03 a.m. Saturday.
Its flight path will carry it over parts of northern Mexico and southwestern New Mexico, making it visible in the night sky over those areas depending on cloud cover.
Spot #Starliner on its way back to Earth! After the spacecraft undocks from the @Space_Station on Sept. 6, it will soar through Earth's skies before landing in New Mexico. If you're on the visibility path (all times MT) and skies are clear, look up and you might see it. pic.twitter.com/k5OfnZZNnb— NASA (@NASA) September 6, 2024
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On June 5, the Boeing spacecraft took off on its first crewed flight, transporting NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the space station. However, as it approached the orbiting laboratory, NASA and Boeing identified helium leaks and noted malfunctions with its reaction control thrusters.
NASA announced last month that out of concerns for the safety of Wilmore and Williams, they will remain aboard the ISS until February while Starliner is autonomously returned to Earth without a crew.
Wilmore and Williams are now scheduled to return home aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft with two other crew members assigned to NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission.
According to NASA’s timetable, following the undocking from the ISS, Starliner will fire a series of departure rockets. Then, on it approach to Earth, the craft is to execute its deorbit burn, lasting approximately 60 seconds, slowing it down enough to re-enter the atmosphere and target the landing site.
Its service module, meanwhile, is set to burn up during re-entry over the southern Pacific Ocean, while its heat shield will be jettisoned at approximately 30,000 feet, exposing a series of drags and parachutes.
At 3,000 feet, Starliner will jettison an additional heat shield and a half dozen inflatable landing bags will be deployed with landing at White Sands to be made at 4 mph. Advertisement
NASA astronauts head to International Space Station
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carries the Boeing Starliner capsule on its maiden crewed flight from Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on June 5, 2024. Photo by Joe Marino/UPI | License Photo
