Two NASA astronauts have been stuck on the Iernational Space Station for nearly three mohs after their Boeing spacecraft encouered technical problems while reaching orbit. Boeing’s Starliner capsule, which is currely stationed at the space station, has suffered a technical malfunction due to a malfunction of the direction corol system and a helium leak. Engineers on the ground are trying to ideify the root of the problems, and NASA is still evaluating the best option to safely return the astronauts to Earth.
NASA and Boeing have ideified two major problems with the Starliner: first, a malfunctioning set of directional corol engines, and second, a helium leak in the propulsion system. Any of these problems could poteially affect the capsule’s ability to safely return astronauts Butch Willmore and Sonny Williams to Earth.
These astronauts were launched io space on the Starliner on June 5. The technical problems started the next day. As Starliner was approaching the Iernational Space Station, five of the capsule’s 28 direction corol engines malfunctioned, resulting in an approximately one-hour delay in the docking process.
The direction corol engines are located in the service part of the spacecraft and are responsible for corolling the moveme and orieation of the capsule in the orbit, especially during connection and separation from the space station. After rebuilding the four direction corol engines, the astronauts managed to reach the space station. However, NASA began an extensive investigation to ideify the root cause of the disturbance. NASA and Boeing engineers at NASA’s White Sands Laboratory in New Mexico conducted a test on a similar engine to test its performance under conditions similar to those experienced by the capsule in space. Also, a “hot fire” test was performed on the Starliner’s direction corol engines while docked with the space station.
Preliminary results showed that most of the direction corol motors were working correctly. However, tests indicated that a small Teflon gasket had expanded due to the high heat and may have blocked fuel flow to the engines. This can be the main cause of malfunctioning of some engines. Steve Stich, NASA’s commercial crew program manager, said the exact cause of the problem could not yet be confirmed with complete certaiy and further investigation was needed.
In addition to the problem of the direction corol motors, helium leakage in the propulsion system is also another challenge facing the mission. Although the helium leak rate is not high enough to jeopardize the mission, it is still under close scrutiny by engineers. NASA is exploring all options to safely return astronauts to Earth. If the Starliner capsule is not certified safe for return, NASA may use the SpaceX capsule for this purpose. A final decision on how the astronauts will return will be made in the coming days.
