INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Update (8:34 AM EST): Boeing provided an updated current state of affairs, and we&ll be watching the NASA press conference at 9 AM EST to
We&ll be providing updated information as it becomes available here.
Update (7:47 AM EST): NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine says that the
agency and Boeing will host a news conference live at 9 AM EST to share more details about the mission status and what occurred
There should also be a brief update shortly with more details.
Update (7:20 AM EST): While the launch and stage separation went as planned,
the Starliner capsule itself missed a planned engine burn to put it in its target orbit en route to the ISS
The teams at Boeing and NASA now say it in a stable orbit and they&re working on next steps for a solution
We&ll provide more info when it available.
Starliner has an off-nominal insertion, but we have spacecraft control
The guidance and control team is assessing their next maneuver.
— Boeing Space (@BoeingSpace) December 20, 2019
Boeing on Friday morning
launched its Starliner CST-100 crew capsule, the spacecraft that will eventually carry astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS)
The Starliner wasn&t carrying any humans — but it did have a Snoopy doll and a robot named &Rosie& on board.
The plush Snoopy is
essentially a fun mascot, though it will provide a very easy to see indication of when the spacecraft has achieved zero gravity, as it in
Rosie, however, will provide information about the forces exerted during the vehicle launch and flight, and help provide an even better idea
of what that trip will be like for real astronauts once they&re strapped in and flying.
Today mission was an &orbital flight test& (OFT) of
Boeing crew capsule, the first such test with an ISS rendezvous, which mirrors what would happen when astronauts are actually on board,
through every step of the process
Today mission prep included closing out and pressuring the capsule spacecraft as if it carried astronauts, too.
Starliner launched atop an
Atlas V launch vehicle provided by Boeing partner United Launch Alliance (ULA), which includes a Centaur upper-stage rocket and a
first-stage booster powered by a Russian-made RD-180 engine
The rocket carried the Starliner to space, with the first and then the second stage separating form the capsule before the capsule itself
fired up its engines to bring it the rest of the way to its target orbit.
Once there, it&ll get in position for docking with the ISS, which
is set to take place tomorrow morning
Once the capsule reaches the ISS, it&ll be captured by the station robotic Canadarm2, controlled by astronauts Jessica Meir and Christina
The capsule may not be carrying people on this run, but it is loaded with around 600 lbs of cargo, including supplies and experiment
materials, which the astronauts on the ISS will unload before the Starliner undocks and makes its return trip to Earth in about a week.
