NASA and Boeing to Provide Update on Stranded Starliner Spacecraft

NASA and Boeing are set to provide an update on the future of their Starliner spacecraft. This comes nearly two years after the vehicle's most recent crewed mission ended with astronauts stranded aboard the International Space Station for months.

The last mission in July 2024 was plagued by helium leaks and thruster failures, which led NASA to determine that Starliner was not safe to use for the return trip. As a result, astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams remained on the space station for nearly nine months instead of the original 10 days.

NASA classified the incident as a Type A mishap, their most serious category. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said that 'Starliner has design and engineering deficiencies that must be corrected.' An audit released in March found that Starliner's leak and propulsion problems remained unresolved.

The update is expected to address questions about remaining issues and whether Starliner can take a crew to the International Space Station again. The next planned mission for Starliner is an uncrewed cargo flight, but no official launch date has been announced yet.