Bpoeing has discovered five different helium leaks on its Starliner spacecraft while docked to the International Space Station.

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  • Des [she/her, they/them]
    ·
    17 days ago

    this couple be a problem. holy shit imagine they can't decouple and deorbit themselves.

    there is a dragon endevour capsule docked. capacity: 4.

    there is the soyuz crew capsule "escape pod". capacity: 3

    3 automated freighters (cygnus and 2 progress. capacity: 0 no re-entry capability

    total crew on ISS (including the fucked Starliner): 9

    they do have loads of supplies and i imagine maybe space-x could send a crewless automated dragon to act as a bus

    EDIT: apparently the dragon "Endevour" has passenger capacity for 3

    • AbbysMuscles [she/her]
      ·
      17 days ago

      After NASA canceled the shuttle program, the Russians and their Soyuz were the only means of manned travel to and from the station for years. I don't know how the Ukraine war has impacted that working relationship, or to what degree it pushed NASA to contract work out to these shitty fucking companies. But if it comes down to it, I'm sure something will be arranged for American astronauts to come home via Baikonur as they've done so many times before.

      • Des [she/her, they/them]
        ·
        17 days ago

        ok so yeah i just did some more reading and the Dragon capsule has spare passenger capacity. the soyuz didn't.

        so they can bring the Starliner crew back on the dragon if needed.

        at first i was like "i can't believe they didn't plan for emergencies"

    • radiofreeval [any]
      ·
      16 days ago

      They have more than enough capability to keep astronauts alive to send up another capsule to take people down, either by dragon or by soyuz. Nobody is in any real danger here.