The astronauts had to stay back at the International Space Station as carrying them home on the glitch prone Starliner was considered too much of a risk
They will now return in a SpaceX Crew Dragon, but for which they will have to wait till February next year
What was supposed to be an eight-day stay at the space station will now be extended to eight months
The glitch prone Boeing Starliner spacecraft, which carried Nasa’s astronauts – Indian origin Sunita (short name Suni) Williams and Butch Wilmore – to the multi-nation joint International Space Station (ISS) returned safely to earth on Saturday, but without its astronauts.
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After undocking from ISS, the capsule made its journey back to earth in autonomous mode.
The astronauts had to stay back at the space station as carrying them home on the Starliner was considered too much of a risk.
They will now return in a SpaceX Crew Dragon, for which they will however have to wait till February next year. What was supposed to be an eight-day stay at the ISS will now be extended to eight months.
Pleased with the successful landing, a Nasa spokesman however wished the mission could have gone as originally planned.
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Earlier, Nasa had informed that that Butch and Suni were in good spirits and in regular contact with their families.
On its first test flight with astronauts on board, Boeing’s Starliner was plagued with problems from the time it blasted off from Cape Canaveral in Florida, USA on June 5 this year.
The capsule experienced several technical glitches, including leaks of helium, which pushes fuel into the propulsion system, and several of its thrusters malfunctioned.
Experts at Boeing and Nasa made concerted efforts over the months to get to the root of these technical issues, but by end of August Nasa decided not to risk the astronauts’ life by bringing them home in the Starliner, even when the Boeing team differed, expressing confidence that it would be safe for the astronauts to return in the capsule.
The absence of two Boeing representatives from the post landing news briefing organised by Nasa, was jarring.
Instead, in a statement, Boeing said it will “review the data and determine the next steps” forward for the programme.
Nasa administrator Bill Nelson has also expressed 100% certainty that Boeing’s Starliner, despite its technical issues, would again fly with a crew onboard.
