How will astronauts return to Earth? NASA’s difficult dilemma

Sonny Williams and Barry Wilmore were only supposed to stay at the hotel for one week. International Space Station (ISS)But now it’s been nearly three months since the astronauts were in space since their spacecraft broke down. And it’s still not known exactly when they’ll be able to return to Earth. NASA is facing one of the toughest decisions in its history — and the deadline is the end of the month.

Before the test flight in early June, everything seemed to be going well. However, during the Starliner spacecraft’s flight, the two astronauts arrived safely at the station. Some problems arose.Helium leaks and damage to some thrusters led to the cancellation of the astronauts’ return. Williams and Wilmore have been waiting on the space station ever since.

NASA’s Tough Dilemma

NASA is being asked to make a very serious decision. The question is: Will the astronauts be able to return with the spacecraft? Starliner On Earth? NASA and Boeing teams have been conducting various tests for weeks, both in space and on Earth, with NASA’s Ken Bowersox saying there is “great work” going on, but also some “painful conversations.”

The two most likely scenarios are: a dangerous return of the astronauts on the Starliner or a transfer to the Crew Dragon spacecraft. In the first case, the problems that arose with the Starliner will have to be solved first – which apparently has not been solved yet.

Alternatively, the Starliner could return to Earth without the astronauts, a mission that would require extensive changes and reconfiguration of the spacecraft program. Crew Dragon could then launch with two astronauts instead of four, like Williams and Wilmore and eventually The crew is scheduled to return to Earth in early 2025.In this case, the astronauts will also need new suits, since the ones they have are not suitable for flying with Crew Dragon.

“Data-driven decision making”

“We don’t want to make a decision based on emotion, we want to make it based on pure data,” Bowersox says. The final decision rests with NASA Administrator Billy Nelson. In his post on X, Nelson stresses that the top priority is astronaut safety.

Williams, 58, and Wilmore, 61, will have to wait a little longer at the ISS anyway. Even if they do fly on the Starliner, it won’t be until September at the earliest, with Crew Dragon likely launching in February. Fortunately, both astronauts are experienced and have been to space before.

Important assistance to the International Space Station

“With test flights like this, you always know there’s a chance it could go on longer,” said NASA’s Joel Montalbano. “But the astronauts are doing well, they’re integrated with the rest of the astronauts on the station. Of course, all of this is hard on the crew and their families, we know that. But they’re professional astronauts and they’re doing a great job.”

Williams and Wilmore provide a huge help to the International Space Station, as NASA has consistently pointed out, but they also consume more supplies, such as food and toiletries.

Does Starliner have a future?

But what will happen to Starliner? The private spacecraft was designed by Boeing on behalf of NASA, with the goal of carrying astronauts to the International Space Station for several years – as a second alternative to SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, which has been in use for years.