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#100
by
yg1968
on 20 Dec, 2019 03:32
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December 19th press conference:
December 17th press conference:
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#101
by
yg1968
on 20 Dec, 2019 09:33
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#102
by
docmordrid
on 22 Dec, 2019 10:46
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Landing coverage
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#103
by
FutureSpaceTourist
on 28 Dec, 2019 20:26
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#104
by
FutureSpaceTourist
on 28 Dec, 2019 21:49
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Starliner Data Collected Ahead of Spacecraft Move
December 28, 2019
Engineers and technicians are conducting closer studies of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft as they recover data from onboard systems and begin preparing the vehicle for its return to Florida, where it will be readied for a future crewed mission to the International Space Station.
The same teammates who packed Starliner for its Orbital Flight Test began moving cargo to access recordings of four onboard camera views, which are anticipated to be released next week. They reported the interior of the crew module looks like it did before lifting off atop an Atlas V rocket last week. Even the tethered gravity indicator – Snoopy – was in the pilot’s seat at landing. That means a number of things, including that the Starliner’s fully operational life support system functioned as intended and the layout of the interior is well-suited to support crew members in the future. The spacecraft also used a fraction of its onboard fuel during the flight through Earth’s atmosphere and landing in White Sands, N.M., confirming aerodynamic models developed for the spacecraft.
Ground teams also began downloading substantial data from myriad sensors aboard Starliner. The information will be used to determine the exact conditions of various stages of flight, including what astronauts will experience when they fly aboard Starliner for the first time.
Stored aboard data recorders inside the spacecraft, the readouts are more precise in some cases than what was transmitted to Mission Control in Houston during the flight test. Taken together, the information provides a more complete picture of what took place during the mission, from guidance and navigation system readings to physical conditions inside the crew module.
Rosie the Rocketeer, who is still in place inside the Starliner spacecraft, has already conveyed the data picked up by her accelerometers and force measurement sensors to begin analysis by engineers over the holidays. Telemetry transmitted directly from the spacecraft during the landing showed a soft impact onto the sands of New Mexico. Rosie’s sensors are expected to confirm those first readings.
The spacecraft, which shows little scorching from the heat of atmospheric entry, was moved into a protective facility at the U.S. Army’s White Sands Missile Range the day after landing. Preparations are now underway to make the spacecraft safe for transport back to Florida where it will undergo even more detailed inspections prior to refurbishment. The move is expected to start after the first of the year and will take about 10 days.
This same Starliner, now named Calypso, is slated to fly a long-duration mission to the International Space Station, carrying NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Josh Cassada, along with two international partner astronauts. In parallel, work continues on another Starliner spacecraft that will carry Boeing astronaut Chris Ferguson and NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Mike Fincke to the space station for the program’s first crewed flight test. The Boeing team is committed to incorporating lessons learned from the Orbital Flight Test into every aspect of the program, from the build of the vehicle to operational aspects, to ensure safe and successful future flights.
https://starlinerupdates.com/starliner-data-collected-ahead-of-spacecraft-move/
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#105
by
FutureSpaceTourist
on 03 Jan, 2020 22:03
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#106
by
SMS
on 03 Jan, 2020 22:42
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#107
by
FutureSpaceTourist
on 07 Jan, 2020 20:07
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NASA Update on Boeing’s Orbital Flight Test
NASA and Boeing are in the process of establishing a joint, independent investigation team to examine the primary issues associated with the company’s uncrewed Orbital Flight Test.
The independent team will inform NASA and Boeing on the root cause of the mission elapsed timer anomaly and any other software issues and provide corrective actions needed before flying crew to the International Space Station for the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. The team will review the primary anomalies experienced during the Dec. 2019 flight test, any potential contributing factors and provide recommendations to ensure a robust design for future missions. Once underway, the investigation is targeted to last about two months before the team delivers its final assessment.
In parallel, NASA is evaluating the data received during the mission to determine if another uncrewed demonstration is required. This decision is not expected for several weeks as teams take the necessary time for this review. NASA’s approach will be to determine if NASA and Boeing received enough data to validate the system’s overall performance, including launch, on-orbit operations, guidance, navigation and control, docking/undocking to the space station, reentry and landing. Although data from the uncrewed test is important for certification, it may not be the only way that Boeing is able to demonstrate its system’s full capabilities.
The uncrewed flight test was proposed by Boeing as a way to meet NASA’s mission and safety requirements for certification and as a way to validate that the system can protect astronauts in space before flying crew. The uncrewed mission, including docking to the space station, became a part of the company’s contract with NASA. Although docking was planned, it may not have to be accomplished prior to the crew demonstration. Boeing would need NASA’s approval to proceed with a flight test with astronauts onboard.
Starliner currently is being transported from the landing location near the U.S. Army’s White Sands Missile Range to the company’s Commercial Crew and Cargo Processing Facility in Florida. Since landing, teams have safed the spacecraft for transport, downloaded data from the spacecraft’s onboard systems for analysis and completed initial inspections of the interior and exterior of Starliner. A more detailed analysis will be conducted after the spacecraft arrives at its processing facility.
Boeing’s Orbital Flight test launched on Friday, Dec. 20, on United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The mission successfully landed two days later on Sunday, Dec. 22, completing an abbreviated test that performed several mission objectives before returning to Earth as the first orbital land touchdown of a human-rated capsule in U.S. history.
Author Jim Bridenstine
Posted on January 7, 2020
https://blogs.nasa.gov/bridenstine/2020/01/07/nasa-update-on-boeings-orbital-flight-test/
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#108
by
Chris Bergin
on 08 Jan, 2020 19:23
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#109
by
SMS
on 14 Jan, 2020 20:24
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#110
by
Chris Bergin
on 15 Jan, 2020 21:27
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Video time!
A tour of Boeing's Starliner CST-100 Commercial Crew and Cargo Processing Facility (C3PF) at the Kennedy Space Center.
Featuring a facility tour, a look at the OFT Starliner that recently returned from her test flight and two Q&As with Tim Reith, Spacecraft Engineering Manager and Ramon Sanchez, Senior Operations Lead.
Filmed by Chris Gebhardt for NASASpaceFlight.com
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#111
by
Machdiamond
on 16 Jan, 2020 12:30
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#112
by
yg1968
on 16 Jan, 2020 17:24
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#113
by
FutureSpaceTourist
on 29 Jan, 2020 12:14
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twitter.com/joroulette/status/1222507375975960577
Boeing provisions $410 million in its Q4 earnings report for an additional uncrewed Starliner mission as NASA evaluates data from the December anomaly. Two glitches, a software glitch and communications issue, nixed the spacecraft's docking with the International Space Station.
https://twitter.com/joroulette/status/1222507376961638400NASA and Boeing expect an interim anomaly report to be completed by this Saturday. The agency will have to decide whether Boeing should repeat the uncrewed test or carry on to its final test carrying astronauts without having previously docked to the ISS.
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#114
by
yg1968
on 30 Jan, 2020 00:24
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#115
by
jacqmans
on 31 Jan, 2020 13:48
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Starliner Teams Analyzing Orbital Flight Test Data as Preparations Continue for Next Flight
Boeing and NASA are nearing the conclusion of detailed evaluations on how each Starliner system performed during last month’s Orbital Flight Test (OFT). This process is separate from the joint Boeing-NASA independent review team investigating the mission clock anomaly that precluded docking with the International Space Station. The thorough data analysis, which is part of the normal post-test flight review process, covers everything observed during prelaunch rehearsals and operations as well as the flight. Ultimately the analysis team will disposition anomalies and observations and evaluate which objectives were met and which require more work.
Independent of that process, Boeing announced January 29 that the company is taking a $410 million charge to provision for the possibility of another uncrewed test flight. While NASA will ultimately decide if an OFT re-flight is necessary, Boeing is as committed as ever to safe flight, mission assurance and helping our customer meet its crew transportation needs. This provisional accounting measure puts the Starliner program in position to support another flight should that mission be deemed necessary, while limiting the schedule impact on beginning regular Starliner service missions to the space station. The charge is intended to cover not only the cost of another flight test, but also the anomaly investigation and corrective action implementation, program disruptions and other work outside the scope of normal program operational costs post-OFT.
Meanwhile, Starliner teams are continuing production and refurbishment efforts on two spacecraft in Florida. A crew module and service module are entering the final stages of production while the crew module that flew OFT is undergoing its standard refurbishment process. Both spacecraft are on pace to support flights in 2020.
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#116
by
FutureSpaceTourist
on 31 Jan, 2020 14:06
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#117
by
FutureSpaceTourist
on 03 Feb, 2020 19:30
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https://twitter.com/thesheetztweetz/status/1224422675034054660 Boeing officials told the GAO that refurbishing the Starliner capsule from December's uncrewed flight test will take 4 months.
twitter.com/thesheetztweetz/status/1224423799724158976
But NASA officials say "a
number of problems were found in recent" testing of Starliner's initiators – while Boeing's design was an accepted risk for the uncrewed test, NASA will require additional testing before a crewed flight.
https://twitter.com/thesheetztweetz/status/1224424361295319042 "Uncertainty remains about when operational missions can begin ... it also remains to be seen whether either contractor can finish manufacturing the hardware and training the astronauts in order to support NASA’s planned time frames"
Full GAO report: gao.gov/assets/710/704…
GAO report attached
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#118
by
FutureSpaceTourist
on 06 Feb, 2020 18:28
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twitter.com/jeff_foust/status/1225496415096492032
ASAP member Paul Hill: a second software issue found with Starliner and corrected; could have led to “catastrophic failure” of spacecraft. Still evaluating root cause. Recommend review of Boeing’s verification processes.
https://twitter.com/jeff_foust/status/1225496550945759232 Saunders: NASA is proceeding with an organizational safety review of Boeing, similar to one already done with SpaceX.
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#119
by
FutureSpaceTourist
on 06 Feb, 2020 18:32
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twitter.com/sciguyspace/status/1225499202421174274
In regard to this issue, I actually asked Boeing comms about it three weeks ago after a source tipped me off. The response I received is in my next tweet.
https://twitter.com/sciguyspace/status/1225499269991424002 "Given the shortened 48 hour mission, software uploads were sent near the end of mission. The final upload before landing’s main purpose was to ensure a proper disposal burn of the Service Module after separation, and had nothing to do with Crew Module reentry."
https://twitter.com/sciguyspace/status/1225500361269620741 As I understand it, there was some kind of code error that would have prevented thruster valves from opening had it not been caught. But I have not been able to get a clear explanation.
Edit to add:
https://twitter.com/joroulette/status/1225503656327471105One safety panel member says Boeing averted a "catastrophic spacecraft failure" during the test by detecting and correcting a software anomaly that occurred in flight. "If it had gone uncorrected, it would have led to erroneous thruster firing and uncontrolled motion"