NASA to decide stranded Starliner astronaut Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore's route home by end of month
NASA needs to decide by the end of August whether to return two astronauts to Earth aboard Boeing's Starliner, which flew them to the International Space Station (ISS), or bring them home on a SpaceX craft, officials said Wednesday.
NASA astronauts Barry «Butch» Wilmore and Sunita «Suni» Williams blasted off for the ISS on Starliner on June 5 for what was meant to be an eight-day stay.
But their return has been delayed by thruster malfunctions that came to light during the first crewed mission to the ISS by the Boeing spacecraft.
NASA officials, at a press conference on Wednesday, said they were still analyzing thruster data, but a decision on whether to use Starliner or Boeing's rival SpaceX was looming.
«We're reaching a point where that last week in August we really should be making a call, if not sooner,» said Ken Bowersox, associate administrator of NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate.
Bowersox said the astronauts were «making the best» of their extra time aboard the ISS «but I'm sure they're eager for a decision, just like the rest of us.»
The main issue is with the propulsion system. «Our big concern is having a successful deorbit burn,» the NASA official said.
Bowersox said there have been «very honest discussions» with Boeing and the US aerospace giant is «100 percent behind their vehicle.»
In the event a decision is made not to use Starliner, Boeing's rival SpaceX, owned by Elon Musk, could potentially launch their scheduled Crew-9 mission to the ISS on September 24 with just two astronauts
