Tag Archives: crewed
NASA’s Crewed Mars Mission in the 2030s Could Unlock Some Geologic Mysteries
NASA Space Technology NASA plans to send humans on a scientific round trip to Mars potentially as early as 2035. The trip will take about six to seven months each way and will cover up to 250 million miles (402 million kilometers) each way. The astronauts may spend as many as 500 days on the planet’s surface before returning to Earth.NASA’s Artemis program plans to return humans to the Moon this decade to practice and prepare for a Mars mission as early as the 2030s. While NASA has several reasons for pursuing such an ambitious mission, the biggest is scientific exploration and discovery.I’m an atmospheric scientist and former NASA researcher involved in establishing the scientific questions a Mars mission would investigate. There are many mysteries to investigate on the red planet, including why Mars looks...
Slow Burn: How Starliner’s crewed test flight went awry
Top Stories Tamfitronics When NASA and Boeing officials walked into the briefing room at the Kennedy Space Center on June 5, they were all smiles. After years of development setbacks, weeks of delays because of a spacecraft helium leak and a final four-day slip caused by a problem with a ground computer, Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner commercial crew spacecraft had finally reached orbit with NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams on board.Well, most of them were smiling. “I’m smiling, believe me,” said a straight-faced Mark Nappi, Boeing vice president and commercial crew program manager, at the briefing.However, he was as relieved as anyone that Starliner’s Crew Flight Test (CFT) mission was underway, given the program’s checkered history. “I can’t tell you how good that feels for our Starliner team,” he said.However, that would be the...
Boeing’s 1st crewed Starliner to return to Earth without astronauts on Sept. 6
NASA Space Technology Boeing's Starliner space capsule is seen docked at the International Space Station.(Image credit: NASA)Boeing's Starliner capsule now has a homecoming date.NASA announced this evening (Aug. 29) that Starliner will depart the International Space Station (ISS) no earlier than next Friday (Sept. 6), provided the weather cooperates and no technical issues pop up.If all goes according to plan, the capsule will undock at 6:04 p.m. EDT (2204 GMT) on Sept. 6 and land under parachutes six hours later in White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico.Starliner launched June 5 on its first-ever crewed mission, carrying NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore toward the ISS. The capsule docked successfully a day later, but there was some drama; Starliner experienced a few helium leaks, and five of its 28 reaction control system thrusters failed...
