Boeing Starliner Finally Launched with Crew to ISS

After two cancellations, Boeing’s Starliner space capsule has finally been successfully launched into space, carrying two crew members.

This first crewed mission to the International Space Station (ISS) arrives seven years late, despite the space capsule project being initiated back in 2010.

The Starliner capsule was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, using an Atlas V rocket by the United Launch Alliance (ULA).

The two crew members on this mission are NASA astronauts Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams.

Starliner is now on its way to the ISS, and the crew will return to Earth within a week.
The Boeing Starliner spacecraft is one of the vehicles used by NASA to send crews to the International Space Station (ISS) after the Space Shuttle program was discontinued nearly a decade ago.

In addition to Starliner, the United States also uses the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule to transport astronauts and supplies to the ISS.

This program faced numerous issues, resulting in Boeing losing around $1.5 billion.

The original purpose of the commercial capsule program was to reduce the cost of sending astronauts to the ISS.

However, the current cost for an astronaut to use Starliner is approximately $90 million, significantly higher compared to $55 million with Crew Dragon.

Each Starliner capsule can carry up to seven astronauts and can be reused up to 10 times.

NASA employs two different systems to ensure a backup is available if one system encounters issues.

The need for a capsule system has become more urgent as relations between the United States and Russia have become increasingly strained.
Using the Soyuz capsule for transport is no longer feasible in the future, as Russia will cease cooperation and plans to build its own space station as early as 2027.