Two astronauts stranded in space to wait till February for Space X rescue
Did you that two astronauts are stranded in space and that they have been there for the last 2 months? Well they not walk on earth till February next year announced NASA. The two astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore have been in the International Space Station since 6 June having gone there through the Boeing Starliner which ended up developing problems that prevented it from making the necessary maneuvers needed to come back to earth. The problems developed after the Boeing capsule’s thrusters failed and some leaks developed.
Wilmore and Williams were on a Boeing mission to dock on the International Space Station as part of NASA’s test flights before receiving green-light for future routine flights. It was scheduled to be an 8 day mission by Boeing’s Starliner but it has now turned to a months long stay for the duo after the technical hitches emerged disrupting the return to earth’s ground.
After the problem emerged, the first plan was to repair the spacecraft remotely. These efforts bore fruits as four of the five failed thrusters have been reactivated in the orbit but the journey cannot be made unless all thrusters are working. These thrusters are fundamental for pushing the spacecraft from the International Space Station after undocking as well as stabilizing the capsule for successful deorbiting. In a blog post made by Boeing on 2nd August the company said that 27 of the 28 reaction control system thrusters are back to functional status. The firm has since lost up to 1.6 billion dollars in losses on their space program and faces immense competition from Space X.
To make matters worse, NASA has now directed that the two astronauts be de-orbited or rescued by Space X spacecraft Dragon in February 2025. After an agency level review on Saturday Bill Nelson, NASA administrator announced that the agency had decided that Williams and Wilmore return next February on a SpaceX-crewed Dragon flight on which two seats have been made available. This announcement came after NASA noted too many uncertainties for the astronauts to use the spacecraft that took them to the space station.
“I want you to know that Boeing has worked very hard with NASA to get the necessary data to make this decision. We want to further understand the root causes and understand the design improvements so that the Boeing Starliner will serve as an important part of our assured crew access to the ISS,” he added.
“Space flight is risky, even at its safest and even at its most routine, and a test flight by nature is neither safe nor routine, and so the decision to keep Butch and Suni aboard the International Space Station and bring the Boeing Starliner home uncrewed is a result of a commitment to safety,” Nelson continued.
If you are wondering about the well being of the two astronauts; they are fine. They are in a space station which is safe and has enough supplies of food and medicine to last them for a long time. Besides, the space station is already a home to a dozen of astronauts hailing from different countries and space agencies including NASA, Roscosmos, ESA, JAXA, and Canadian Space Agency. The space station has been continuously occupied since November 2000. Currently there are 10 astronauts in the station and the new guys make the number 12. Four cargo spacecrafts including Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus, SpaceX’s Dragon, JAXA’s HTV, and the Russian Progress regularly deliver cargo, devices, science, and supplies to the space station. You can read more about the 12 individuals in space here https://whoisinspace.com/.
Its the prayer of every science loving individual that the two make it out of the station and dock on earth safely.
Should I write about life in the space station; comment yes in the comment section.
Adios.
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