SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule will convey Astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore again residence from the Worldwide Area Station in February 2025, NASA mentioned on Saturday.
The company’s resolution marks the most recent setback for Boeing’s pricey and chronically delayed Starliner program, and it means extending the astronauts’ supposed eight-day journey to a complete of eight months.
Since Boeing first landed its $4.3 billion contract with NASA in 2014, the Starliner effort has gone greater than $1.5 billion over finances, following a botched first check flight and a slew of subsequent points, together with defective parachutes, flammable protecting tape, rust accumulation, a difficulty involving an oxygen tank’s stress regulation valve, and most lately, helium leaks that would compromise the car’s thrusters.
Nonetheless at present docked on the Worldwide Area Station, the Boeing Starliner will return to Earth uncrewed, in spite of Boeing’s stance that the Starliner is able to carrying Williams and Wilmore residence safely.
