Washington, DC [US]: Indian-origin astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore entered the International Space Station on Friday morning, the US space agency said on Friday.
NASA's Boeing Starliner carrying the two astronauts docked with the ISS at 1:34 p.m. (EDT) on Wednesday after taking off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
NASA footage showed two NASA astronauts entering the USS's hatch door at 3:46 pm ET on Thursday (which means Friday morning IST). Seven astronauts of the Expedition 71 crew on the ISS welcome Sunita and Butch, the first astronauts to fly on Boeing's new capsule. The 59-year-old Indian-origin astronaut sneaks into a gig after entering the ISS through a hatch And hugged the astronauts present on the space station.The spacecraft launched from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 10:52 a.m. on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket.
The journey was not without challenges, as new issues emerged along the way, but NASA astronauts Wilmore and Williams reached the station safely after overcoming obstacles. Docking was done to secure the connection between the Starliner and the station's port. with additional steps taken. "It's nice to be back in the big city in the sky," Wilmore enthused.
Pressure equalized between the Starliner and the ISS and space between the two opened at approximately 3:46 a.m. ET, where the crew were warmly welcomed by their ISS counterparts.Wilmore expressed his gratitude to those involved in the mission, saying, "We had music. Matt was dancing. It was great. What a great place to come back to."Williams echoed his sentiments, noting the family and Thanked friends and expressed happiness at becoming a part of the ISS family."We have another family here, which is awesome," Williams said. "And we're so happy to be going to space, once in the Starliner on the Atlas V, and then here on the International Space Station. It doesn't get any better than that."
The Expedition 71 crew of NASA astronauts on the ISS includes Michael Barrett, Matt Dominick, Tracy C. Dyson, and Janet Epps, and Roscosmos astronauts Nikolai Chub, Alexander Grebenkin and Oleg Kononenko. NASA Associate Administrator Jim Frey told a reporter The conference appreciated the importance of the mission and emphasized its role in advancing human space flight."Yesterday's launch and today's docking put Starliner on the path to certification to enable continued exploration and science that benefits humanity," Frey said during a press conference Thursday.
He added, "To Butch and Suni, I want to thank them for the years they have spent getting us to this point, the expertise they bring to their roles and their dedication to the work of advancing human space flight." Reflecting their dedication." According to CNN report, the two will spend the next eight days in the orbiting laboratory.
Despite challenges including helium leaks and thruster problems during the voyage, the mission proceeded, with the crew successfully troubleshooting and repairing problems as they arose.
Boeing aerospace engineer Jim May confirmed the Starliner's stability despite the helium leak and said it was not a safety concern.Mission Control closely monitored the situation as the crew proceeded to dock. NASA Commercial Crew Program Manager Steve Stich compared the challenges facing Starliner to those faced by previous space shuttle programs, and his Emphasis on manageable nature.
According to the space agency, two additional helium leaks were detected on the spacecraft. A helium leak was detected before launch and was deemed acceptable.
"Helium is used in spacecraft thruster systems to allow thrusters to fire and is not combustible or toxic," Boeing said in a post on X."According to NASA's live broadcast, two of the three leaks have been patched as of Thursday morning. A fourth smaller leak was also discovered later," Stich said.
According to the broadcast, mission managers voted "go" for rendezvous and docking with the space station, and the leak was not expected to impact the docking.
"During all of Starliner's rendezvous and proximity operations, we will keep those thrusters open, but they will remain open until docking," Boeing aerospace engineer Jim May confirmed in a social media post Thursday morning. Starliner currently maintains plenty of helium reserves. Is."The helium leak currently poses no safety issue to the crew, vehicle or mission."
"What we need to do over the next few days is take a look at the leak rate there and figure out what we'll do relative to the rest of the mission," he said. “I think we have some tools in our toolkit to manage it. We'll take some time to assess it and undock and land when we're ready.,
“Now that we're in flight and we've seen some more leaks, if that's a common cause in those flanges, maybe there's something else going on in the flange, maybe a lot of bad seals or some other change Ho," she said. Stich said the problems Starliner is facing are not typical of NASA's space shuttle program's first crewed flight or other test flights of spacecraft scheduled to carry humans to space. It is not the opposite.
As Wilmore and Williams were going to sleep Wednesday night, mission control informed them that they needed to close two valves due to a new helium leak, CNN reports.
"Teams have identified three helium leaks on the spacecraft. One of these was discussed with the management plan prior to flight," NASA shared in the post." "The other two are new since the spacecraft arrived in orbit. Two of the affected helium valves have been closed and the spacecraft remains stable." Starliner's much-anticipated journey, the culmination of Boeing's efforts under NASA's Commercial Crew Program, represents a significant milestone in American spaceflight history. Is.
The success of the mission ushered in a new era in space exploration and collaboration between NASA and private industry partners, with Williams making history as the first woman to fly aboard such a mission.
CNN reported that despite delays and setbacks in previous launch attempts, Starliner's successful arrival at the ISS underscores the resilience and tenacity of the teams involved.
NASA's Boeing Starliner carrying the two astronauts docked with the ISS at 1:34 p.m. (EDT) on Wednesday after taking off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
NASA footage showed two NASA astronauts entering the USS's hatch door at 3:46 pm ET on Thursday (which means Friday morning IST). Seven astronauts of the Expedition 71 crew on the ISS welcome Sunita and Butch, the first astronauts to fly on Boeing's new capsule. The 59-year-old Indian-origin astronaut sneaks into a gig after entering the ISS through a hatch And hugged the astronauts present on the space station.The spacecraft launched from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 10:52 a.m. on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket.
The journey was not without challenges, as new issues emerged along the way, but NASA astronauts Wilmore and Williams reached the station safely after overcoming obstacles. Docking was done to secure the connection between the Starliner and the station's port. with additional steps taken. "It's nice to be back in the big city in the sky," Wilmore enthused.
Pressure equalized between the Starliner and the ISS and space between the two opened at approximately 3:46 a.m. ET, where the crew were warmly welcomed by their ISS counterparts.Wilmore expressed his gratitude to those involved in the mission, saying, "We had music. Matt was dancing. It was great. What a great place to come back to."Williams echoed his sentiments, noting the family and Thanked friends and expressed happiness at becoming a part of the ISS family."We have another family here, which is awesome," Williams said. "And we're so happy to be going to space, once in the Starliner on the Atlas V, and then here on the International Space Station. It doesn't get any better than that."
The Expedition 71 crew of NASA astronauts on the ISS includes Michael Barrett, Matt Dominick, Tracy C. Dyson, and Janet Epps, and Roscosmos astronauts Nikolai Chub, Alexander Grebenkin and Oleg Kononenko. NASA Associate Administrator Jim Frey told a reporter The conference appreciated the importance of the mission and emphasized its role in advancing human space flight."Yesterday's launch and today's docking put Starliner on the path to certification to enable continued exploration and science that benefits humanity," Frey said during a press conference Thursday.
He added, "To Butch and Suni, I want to thank them for the years they have spent getting us to this point, the expertise they bring to their roles and their dedication to the work of advancing human space flight." Reflecting their dedication." According to CNN report, the two will spend the next eight days in the orbiting laboratory.
Despite challenges including helium leaks and thruster problems during the voyage, the mission proceeded, with the crew successfully troubleshooting and repairing problems as they arose.
Boeing aerospace engineer Jim May confirmed the Starliner's stability despite the helium leak and said it was not a safety concern.Mission Control closely monitored the situation as the crew proceeded to dock. NASA Commercial Crew Program Manager Steve Stich compared the challenges facing Starliner to those faced by previous space shuttle programs, and his Emphasis on manageable nature.
According to the space agency, two additional helium leaks were detected on the spacecraft. A helium leak was detected before launch and was deemed acceptable.
"Helium is used in spacecraft thruster systems to allow thrusters to fire and is not combustible or toxic," Boeing said in a post on X."According to NASA's live broadcast, two of the three leaks have been patched as of Thursday morning. A fourth smaller leak was also discovered later," Stich said.
According to the broadcast, mission managers voted "go" for rendezvous and docking with the space station, and the leak was not expected to impact the docking.
"During all of Starliner's rendezvous and proximity operations, we will keep those thrusters open, but they will remain open until docking," Boeing aerospace engineer Jim May confirmed in a social media post Thursday morning. Starliner currently maintains plenty of helium reserves. Is."The helium leak currently poses no safety issue to the crew, vehicle or mission."
"What we need to do over the next few days is take a look at the leak rate there and figure out what we'll do relative to the rest of the mission," he said. “I think we have some tools in our toolkit to manage it. We'll take some time to assess it and undock and land when we're ready.,
“Now that we're in flight and we've seen some more leaks, if that's a common cause in those flanges, maybe there's something else going on in the flange, maybe a lot of bad seals or some other change Ho," she said. Stich said the problems Starliner is facing are not typical of NASA's space shuttle program's first crewed flight or other test flights of spacecraft scheduled to carry humans to space. It is not the opposite.
As Wilmore and Williams were going to sleep Wednesday night, mission control informed them that they needed to close two valves due to a new helium leak, CNN reports.
"Teams have identified three helium leaks on the spacecraft. One of these was discussed with the management plan prior to flight," NASA shared in the post." "The other two are new since the spacecraft arrived in orbit. Two of the affected helium valves have been closed and the spacecraft remains stable." Starliner's much-anticipated journey, the culmination of Boeing's efforts under NASA's Commercial Crew Program, represents a significant milestone in American spaceflight history. Is.
The success of the mission ushered in a new era in space exploration and collaboration between NASA and private industry partners, with Williams making history as the first woman to fly aboard such a mission.
CNN reported that despite delays and setbacks in previous launch attempts, Starliner's successful arrival at the ISS underscores the resilience and tenacity of the teams involved.