Starliner to return sans crew after safety concerns, repairs

NASA announced that Boeing's first crewed capsule, Starliner, will detach from the International Space Station (ISS) on September 6. However, the astronauts who traveled into space in June and were supposed to spend a week there will not be on board.

According to NASA, after a six-hour flight, the capsule is set to land utilizing a parachute system at a spaceport in New Mexico. The capsule will detach at 6:04 PM Eastern Time. Landing is planned at White Sands Space Harbor, New Mexico. It is scheduled for September 7 at 12:03 AM.

A parachute and air cushions will ensure the vessel's gentle descent onto the surface. Afterward, the capsule will be transported to Boeing's factory in the Kennedy Space Center, which is owned by NASA and located in Florida.

According to the latest information from NASA, two astronauts who reached the ISS on June 6 via the Boeing spacecraft will be brought back to Earth aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon in February 2025. This decision was made last week after the crewed return trip by Starliner was deemed too dangerous. The reason was the detection of a helium leak and damage to five of the vessel's twenty-eight engines. Astronomers managed to activate two engines just before docking, and their stay on the ISS was supposed to last seven days.

Before the mission started, NASA explained that the Starliner could be docked to the ISS for up to forty-five days. American astronauts have currently been on the station for over 85 days. This mission is Boeing's first crewed flight test, which has been canceled twice.

After announcing that the astronauts will return from the ISS only in February 2025, NASA reassured the public that although they will be there for a really long time – as much as eight months – in the past, astronauts have remained in space for up to 12 months.