Two astronauts are stuck on the space station, but NASA won’t say they’re stuck.
These are the two astronauts of the Starliner capsule, from the Boeing company: Commander Barry Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams. Arrived on June 6th on the space station for a stay that was only supposed to last a week, they are still there, two months later, due to technical problems that have not yet been resolved. And according to the latest news, they could have to stay there for another 6 months. These two NASA “veterans” are respectively on their 2nd and 3rd trips up there.
Can we use the word “stuck” or “blocked” (in English, stranded)? As the science journalist of the New York Timespuzzled by NASA’s reluctance to use the word: “If you go somewhere for what you expect to be an 8-day trip and you’re not able to leave for 8 months, most people would consider that ‘stuck’.”
On the other hand, for both astronauts, there would have been worse places to be “stuck.” “Butch and I have been here before, and it’s like coming home,” Suni Williams said at a news conference last month. “It’s amazing to be here, so I’m not complaining.”
Boeing could have done without the unprecedented attention. This is the first manned flight of its Starliner capsule, which is competing with SpaceX’s Dragon capsules to carry American astronauts to the International Space Station — replacing the Russian Soyuz capsules that have been the only option since 2011. And this flight was supposed to be the final test to get NASA’s approval for the regular use of Boeing’s capsules in the future.
The technical problems in question included five of the 28 engines used for precision maneuvers malfunctioning as the station approached on June 6; and a helium leak during flight into the thrusters, a problem who was known before launch and which does not pose a risk to astronauts, Boeing assures.
In his most recent communication on the subjecton August 14, NASA said only that “its engineers and technicians are combing through the data” from the flight and “weighing options for how to return the astronauts to Earth.” That’s assuming Williams and Wilmore had to wait for a Dragon capsule, and they would have to stay up there for another six months. In its communications since June, NASA has also been careful to emphasize that the space station is well-stocked with food, water, and oxygen, and that this extended stay did not pose any problem on this side. As for the astronauts, they have plenty to keep them busyin this highly technological environment which requires constant maintenance.
A decision on their return could be made by the end of the month.
