The Boeing-designed Starliner spacecraft successfully landed in the New Mexico desert late yesterday, concluding a three-month test mission that had been plagued by technical issues. The mission’s complications forced the two astronauts who had originally been scheduled to fly on it to remain aboard the International Space Station until next year.

NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams, the first to fly on the Starliner, remained on the ISS while the spacecraft detached yesterday evening for its six-hour journey back to Earth.

A live NASA broadcast showed Starliner’s smooth reentry into Earth’s atmosphere, completing the final and most critical phase of its mission. The spacecraft reentered the atmosphere at an orbital speed of 27,400 kilometers per hour and, after approximately 45 minutes, deployed a series of parachutes to slow its descent. A set of airbags inflated moments before landing at the White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico.

Technical issues with the capsule’s propulsion system had e
xtended the mission, originally planned to last eight days, to eight months. NASA announced last week that the astronauts would return to Earth in February 2025 aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft after receiving additional food and supplies.

Five of Starliner’s 28 thrusters malfunctioned while Wilmore and Williams were aboard during their approach to the ISS in June. The same propulsion system also caused several helium leaks, which are used to increase the pressure in the engines.

Boeing hopes to recover the Starliner capsule after its landing in New Mexico and continue investigating the cause of the propulsion system failures in space.

Source: Qatar News Agency