Customize Consent Preferences

We use cookies to help you navigate efficiently and perform certain functions. You will find detailed information about all cookies under each consent category below.

The cookies that are categorized as "Necessary" are stored on your browser as they are essential for enabling the basic functionalities of the site. ... 

Always Active

Necessary cookies are required to enable the basic features of this site, such as providing secure log-in or adjusting your consent preferences. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable data.

No cookies to display.

Functional cookies help perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collecting feedback, and other third-party features.

No cookies to display.

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics such as the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

No cookies to display.

Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

No cookies to display.

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with customized advertisements based on the pages you visited previously and to analyze the effectiveness of the ad campaigns.

No cookies to display.

HomeUSNASA says it has still not decided how to bring two stuck...

NASA says it has still not decided how to bring two stuck astronauts back to Earth

NASA has said it has still not decided how to bring home two astronauts from the International Space Station (ISS) after their spacecraft developed faults on their outward voyage.

In a news conference on Wednesday, the space agency said Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who arrived at the ISS in June expecting to be there for eight days, may yet have to stay until February.

The astronauts arrived there on a Boeing Starliner – the first crew to use the craft.

Image:
Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore on the International Space Station. Pic: NASA

This photo provided by NASA shows Boeing's Starliner spacecraft which launched astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the International Space Station docked to the Harmony module's forward port on July 3, 2024, seen from a window on the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft docked to the adjacent port. (NASA via AP)
Image:
Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft seen from the ISS. Pic: NASA

But the vessel suffered thruster failures and helium leaks en route, raising doubts about whether it could carry them back to Earth safely – leaving the pair in space limbo.

The thrusters are crucial for holding the capsule in the right position when it comes time to descend from orbit.

If NASA decides not to use the Starliner, which Boeing has said is able to return them safely, they would catch a ride on SpaceX’s next flight, which would mean staying at the space station until next Februar.

But by that point, they will have been in space for eight months.

Follow Sky News on WhatsApp
Follow Sky News on WhatsApp

Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News

Tap here

NASA’s space operations mission chief Ken Bowersox told reporters they are analysing more data before making a decision – either by the end of next week or the beginning of the next.

He said: “We’ve got time available before we bring Starliner home and we want to use that time wisely.”

Switching to SpaceX would also involve standing down two of the four astronauts due to be on board the SpaceX flight, currently scheduled for late September.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Astronauts on the International Space hold a tongue-in-cheek Olympics in space.

Wilmore and Williams would take the empty seats in SpaceX’s Dragon capsule once that half-year mission ends.

NASA’s safety chief Russ DeLoach added: “We don’t have enough insight and data to make some sort of simple, black-and-white calculation.”

Mr DeLoach said the space agency wants to make room for all opinions, unlike what happened on NASA’s two shuttle tragedies, Challenger and Columbia, when dissenting views were ignored.

Suni Williams shows off her space hair during news conference in July. Pic: AP
Image:
Suni Williams shows off her space hair during news conference in July. Pic: AP

“That may mean, at times, we don’t move very fast because we’re getting everything out, and I think you can kind of see that at play here,” he said.

One complication is that the space suits they used to travel to the ISS on Starliner would not be suitable on the SpaceX craft, if it’s used to take them home, meaning they may have to return to Earth suitless.

Read more from Sky News:
Scientists believe they have unravelled Stonehenge mystery
Self-driving taxis causing sleepless nights for residents

The BBC, quoting Joel Montalbano, NASA’s deputy associate administrator, said: “They would come unsuited in the [SpaceX] Crew Dragon.”

Wilmore and Williams are retired navy captains who spent months aboard the space station years ago, been helping with experiments and repairs since they arrived.

NASA chief astronaut Joe Acaba said: “They will do what we ask them to do. That’s their job as astronauts.

“This mission is a test flight and as Butch and Suni expressed ahead of their launch, they knew this mission might not be perfect.”

Content Source: news.sky.com

Related News

Latest News