NASA decided it was too risky to bring the astronauts back on this flight due to technical problems with the capsule.
Boeing's Starliner capsule is set for a critical return to Earth this week, but without the astronauts it was designed to bring home.
's commercial crew program manager.Wilmore and Williams—who made headlines last month when their eight-day mission was forced into an eight-month one—are now considered full-time crew members.Their time is spent assisting with experiments and maintenance alongside the seven other astronauts aboard the ISS.The duo will eventually return to Earth in February on a SpaceX Dragon capsule.
have decided to launch the Dragon capsule with only two astronauts instead of the usual four.A reduced crew will allow SpaceX to fulfill its mission without overcrowding the ISS.The Starliner's challenges are not new. Boeing's first test flight in 2019 was marred by software errors that prevented the capsule from reaching the ISS.After three years, the mission was repeated with a new hosting of issues surfaced.Over $1 billion in repairs and modifications were carried out as a result.
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