Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft has left the International Space Station and is heading back to Earth for a landing in New Mexico. NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore will not be on board, as NASA determined that Starliner was not reliable enough to bring them home. Instead, the astronauts will remain at the space station for another five months and return in February aboard a SpaceX vehicle.
Despite NASA’s hesitancy to send the astronauts home on Starliner, agency officials expressed confidence that the spacecraft’s landing should go smoothly. The spacecraft is expected to land early Saturday at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico using parachutes to slow its descent.
The first crewed test flight of Boeing’s Starliner encountered troubles, including helium leaks and problems with the propulsion system. Boeing will need to make modifications to the spacecraft to prepare it for routine spaceflight to the space station. Meanwhile, SpaceX has been reliably transporting astronauts and supplies to the space station since 2020.
Wilmore and Williams will return to Earth in February aboard a SpaceX Dragon vehicle, as part of NASA’s outlined plan. The Crew-9 astronauts originally scheduled to launch with Dragon will be reduced to two to accommodate the returning Starliner crew. In the meantime, Wilmore and Williams will continue to conduct scientific experiments and help with maintenance aboard the space station until their return next year.
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