this post was submitted on 24 Aug 2024
221 points (99.1% liked)
Space
8687 readers
5 users here now
Share & discuss informative content on: Astrophysics, Cosmology, Space Exploration, Planetary Science and Astrobiology.
Rules
- Be respectful and inclusive.
- No harassment, hate speech, or trolling.
- Engage in constructive discussions.
- Share relevant content.
- Follow guidelines and moderators' instructions.
- Use appropriate language and tone.
- Report violations.
- Foster a continuous learning environment.
Picture of the Day
The Busy Center of the Lagoon Nebula
Related Communities
๐ญ Science
- [email protected]
- [email protected]
- [email protected]
- [email protected]
- [email protected]
- [email protected]
- [email protected]
- [email protected]
- [email protected]
๐ Engineering
๐ Art and Photography
Other Cool Links
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
This is not what I've read.
Boeing engineers tested the thrusters and managed to replicate the issue. They found that there issue was caused by a bulging of a Teflon valve.
However they don't understand the root cause of why the Teflon is bulging.
So Boeing said it's safe for the astronauts to return on Starliner but they also said that they fixed the thruster issues they had on the previous flight.
Not all NASA is confident that the Starliner is safe enough.
IIRC, the whole thing is a bit of misconception in the popular imagination. It'll reenter just fine if it manages the right maneuvers. The risk is hitting the ISS on the way out.
And actually making those maneuvers. If the seals bulge again and disable a thruster, they might be unable to control their flight.
The 1 thruster experiencing that worst case isn't needed. The 27 others all tested high 90% range through multiple hot fires a couple weeks back.
Was this update. About five minutes of update starting at this timestamp.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLNeIx7AwVE&t=2m12s