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Listen online: NASA provides update about troubled Boeing Starliner astronaut mission

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The telecon today (Aug. 14) occurred at 1 p.m. ET.

Media Briefing: NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test (Aug. 14, 2024) - YouTube Media Briefing: NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test (Aug. 14, 2024) - YouTube
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Update for 2 pm ET: NASA's teleconference on the Boeing Starliner astronaut mission has ended. You can listen to the replay above. Read our full wrap story.

NASA will provide an update about the ongoing astronaut mission of Boeing's Starliner capsule today (Aug. 14), and you can listen live.

The teleconference about Starliner's Crew Flight Test (CFT) mission will begin at 1:00 p.m. EDT (1700 GMT). NASA will stream audio of the briefing live, and Space.com will carry the broadcast if the agency makes it available as usual.

CFT launched on June 5, sending NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore to the International Space Station (ISS) for a planned weeklong stay. Starliner stayed much longer, however; it remains docked to the orbiting lab while NASA and Boeing troubleshoot issues with the capsule's reaction control system (RCS) thrusters, a handful of which failed during its approach to the ISS on June 6.

NASA has still not announced a target departure date for Starliner, and it's possible the capsule won't end up carrying Williams and Wilmore back to Earth; the duo could come home in a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule, if Starliner's issues aren't solved to NASA's satisfaction.

Related: Boeing Starliner 1st astronaut flight: Live updates

We could learn more about that decision during today's briefing. The participants are:

  • Ken Bowersox, associate administrator, NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate
  • Joel Montalbano, deputy associate administrator, NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate
  • Russ DeLoach, chief, NASA's Office of Safety and Mission Assurance 
  • Joe Acaba, NASA chief astronaut 
  • Emily Nelson, chief flight director, NASA's Flight Operations Directorate

Boeing's Starliner docked at the International Space Station during Crew Flight Test in July 2024. (Image credit: NASA)
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— Thruster glitches and helium leaks can't stop Boeing's Starliner astronaut test flight — but why are they happening?

— Starliner: Boeing's next-generation spaceship for astronauts

 — SpaceX's Crew-9 astronaut launch delayed to Sept. 24 due to Boeing Starliner issues

CFT is Starliner's third spaceflight overall, after uncrewed test missions to the ISS in December 2019 and May 2022. The 2019 effort failed — Starliner got stuck in the wrong orbit for a rendezvous with the orbiting lab — but the 2022 flight was successful.

NASA awarded both Boeing and SpaceX contracts back in September 2014 to ferry agency astronauts to and from the ISS. SpaceX flew its version of CFT back in 2020 and is now in the middle of its eighth operational, long-duration astronaut flight to the station for NASA, known as Crew-8.

Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: community@space.com.

Mike Wall
Mike Wall
Senior Space Writer

Michael Wall is a Senior Space Writer with Space.com and joined the team in 2010. He primarily covers exoplanets, spaceflight and military space, but has been known to dabble in the space art beat. His book about the search for alien life, "Out There," was published on Nov. 13, 2018. Before becoming a science writer, Michael worked as a herpetologist and wildlife biologist. He has a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from the University of Sydney, Australia, a bachelor's degree from the University of Arizona, and a graduate certificate in science writing from the University of California, Santa Cruz. To find out what his latest project is, you can follow Michael on Twitter.

10 Comments Comment from the forums
  • jlf180
    Where is Steve Stich? Why isn't he part of the panel?
    Reply
  • 24launch
    I know, right? Last week they dropped Mark Nappi (Boeing) and now this week they've excluded both Nappi and Stitch. The last holdout from all the previous public updates is just Bowersox!

    Should be an interesting discussion though it's already been rumored that they may still put the final decision off yet another week.
    Reply
  • Viking
    What would happen if Suni and Butch refused to use the Starliner?
    Reply
  • 24launch
    And...they're just going to kick the can down the street another week or two before they announce a decision... At least they're having regular press conferences. It helps keep the public and the media from assuming the worst.
    Reply
  • motie
    jlf180 said:
    Where is Steve Stich? Why isn't he part of the panel?
    Probably at the doc getting his ulcer treated.
    Reply
  • DrRaviSharma
    Seriously - I grew up working on Apollo where money was not a major factor! Alas facilities of those times are planned today!

    If this was a period of plenty, and if we had the luxury of having a couple of Starliners similarly ready for launch, it would be an easy decision!

    Bring the Test Starliner back uncrewed and study its performance and correct the anomaly of thrusters on the ground hardware. Test thrusters configurations in alternate uncrewed satellites and confirm that Problem is solved.

    Then send the backup Test Starliner to bring back Suni and Butch.
    This would enable an alternative US capability to SpaceX and can be done in about same time as Falcon return in Feb 2025 or so.
    This would make use of 6+B invested in Boeing.
    Let us not forget, over the years for Aerospace sector Boeing has Loads of useful information base, only they need to select correct people in their team who have the commitment beyond usual corporate goals related to bottom line!

    These types of Logically then available Options (5 of them) were suggested by me to NASA on the day of Columbia Loss Feb 3 year 2003 and NASA accepted 3 of them for remaining 10 years of Shuttle flights. I had similar roles to play during Apollo 13 and corrections were made that I and my MSFEB team suggested for A14-A17 missions!

    Best wishes to Suni and Butch and also for NASA investments in these crucial and needed technologies in support of Human Space Flight.

    Ravi
    Reply
  • ChrisA
    DrRaviSharma said:
    Seriously - I grew up working on Apollo where money was not a major factor! Alas facilities of those times are planned today!

    If this was a period of plenty, and if we had the luxury of having a couple of Starliners similarly ready for launch, it would be an easy decision!

    Bring the Test Starliner back uncrewed and study its performance and correct the anomaly of thrusters on the ground hardware. Test thrusters configurations in alternate uncrewed satellites and confirm that Problem is solved.

    Then send the backup Test Starliner to bring back Suni and Butch.
    This would enable an alternative US capability to SpaceX and can be done in about same time as Falcon return in Feb 2025 or so.
    This would make use of 6+B invested in Boeing.
    Let us not forget, over the years for Aerospace sector Boeing has Loads of useful information base, only they need to select correct people in their team who have the commitment beyond usual corporate goals related to bottom line!

    These types of Logically then available Options (5 of them) were suggested by me to NASA on the day of Columbia Loss Feb 3 year 2003 and NASA accepted 3 of them for remaining 10 years of Shuttle flights. I had similar roles to play during Apollo 13 and corrections were made that I and my MSFEB team suggested for A14-A17 missions!

    Best wishes to Suni and Butch and also for NASA investments in these crucial and needed technologies in support of Human Space Flight.

    Ravi
    No. That plan would never have worked. You can not return the test Starliner back to Earth before sending a return vehicle up first. The best plan really was to try and test the current vehicle while it is in space. If that fails then you send a new one up, test it and only then have the crew use it to return to Earth. The trouble is they are out of docking ports.
    Reply
  • DrRaviSharma
    ChrisA said:
    No. That plan would never have worked. You can not return the test Starliner back to Earth before sending a return vehicle up first. The best plan really was to try and test the current vehicle while it is in space. If that fails then you send a new one up, test it and only then have the crew use it to return to Earth. The trouble is they are out of docking ports.
    I said the same thing perhaps it is less clear "Bring the Test Starliner back uncrewed and study its performance and correct the anomaly of thrusters on the ground hardware. Test thrusters configurations in alternate uncrewed satellites and confirm that Problem is solved."
    They have already tested docked in space all along for several weeks now already.
    Reply
  • Rob77
    A little left field, curious to see if there are compatibility issues with the flight suits that are used for Starliner and Dragon? If they come back in a Dragon. will they need to don a Dragon specific flight suit?
    Reply
  • ChrisA
    Rob77 said:
    A little left field, curious to see if there are compatibility issues with the flight suits that are used for Starliner and Dragon? If they come back in a Dragon. will they need to don a Dragon specific flight suit?
    There is no compatibility. the plan would be to send two astronauts and two extra space suits. The two in space have known measurements so suits would be made for them and sent up.
    Reply