Skip to main content

'Will You Return To Space On Boeing Starliner?' What NASA Astronauts Said

NASA Crew-9 astronauts Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore and Nick Hague spoke to the press today about the future of NASA's human space flight programme, after their recent return from the International Space Station (ISS).

Mr Wilmore said they will carefully study and rectify all the issues they have faced before going to space in another Boeing Starliner spacecraft.

To a reporter's question to Mr Wilmore on whom he would place the blame for the mission that did not go as planned, he said, "There were some issues that happened with Starliner. There were some issues which of course prevented us from returning... If I were to start pointing fingers, I'd blame myself. I will start with myself."

"Blame, I don't like this term... We are all responsible, NASA and Boeing too. Trust is very important. We are not going to look back and say 'this person or that entity is to be blamed'. We are going to look forward and say 'how do we use the lessons we learned from this whole process and make sure we are successful in future," Mr Wilmore said.

On whether they would go on the Starliner again, he said, "Yes, because we are going to rectify, fix, make it work. Boeing is completely committed. NASA is completely committed."

Ms Williams agreed, pointing at the strengths of the Starliner, which is a complex spacecraft.

"The spacecraft [Starliner] is very capable, but there are things that need to be fixed as Butch mentioned. Folks are actively working on that. It's a great spacecraft with many features that other spacecraft don't have. It's an honour to be a part of this," Ms Williams said.

The NASA Crew-9 astronauts along with Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov splashed down on Earth on Elon Musk's SpaceX's Dragon capsule on March 18.

The White House had highlighted President Donald Trump's role in prioritising their rescue. President Trump alleged his predecessor Joe Biden abandoned the astronauts in space. On March 7, he announced he gave permission to Mr Musk to bring back the two American astronauts.

Ms Wlliams and Mr Wilmore stayed on for nine months in the ISS after their Boeing Starliner spacecraft malfunctioned, turning a mission that was supposed to be short into a long one.



from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/rWRQAjx
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Delhi to Get More EV Charging, Battery Swapping Stations as Cab Aggregators Increase E-Bikes

The NDMC is planning to increase the number of EV charging stations in Lutyens' Delhi and even provide battery swapping facilities at some of these points, a senior official said on Wednesday. With Delhi being among the most polluted capitals in the world, the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has been making a push for electric vehicles to nudge residents to opt for cleaner vehicle options. There are around 100 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations across the national capital at present and this would be the first time that some of them would have battery swapping facilities, which is quite prominent in Western countries, he said. The official said the aim is to provide easy accessibility to charging stations and to save time by providing swapping facilities. This will give a major push to EVs in the city. Various PSUs, including the Rajasthan Electronics and Instruments Limited (REIL) and the Kerala State Electronics Development Corporation Limited (KELTRON), have approac...
Post a Comment
Read more

After Nitish Kumar's 'Praise', BJP Says Doors Closed For Him

The opposition BJP in Bihar on Thursday said that its doors were "closed" for Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who dumped the saffron party a year ago, stripping it of power in the state. State BJP President Samrat Choudhary made the averment to this effect in reply to queries from journalists about the Janata Dal United leader's address to the convocation ceremony of Mahatma Gandhi Central University at Motihari. Speaking in the presence of President Droupadi Murmu and Governor Rajendra Arlekar, Mr Kumar had freely spoken of the tussle he had with the then Congress government at the Centre for getting a university approved for Motihari, where Mahatma Gandhi had launched the Champaran Satyagraha. Without mentioning Prime Minister Narendra Modi by name, Mr Kumar acknowledged that the project saw the light of the day only after a change of guard "in 2014" as the UPA government "initially refused and after much persuasion agreed in principle but did not move for...
Post a Comment
Read more

Delhi Air On Brink Of Turning "Severe", Most Polluted In India

Delhi's air quality was on the brink of the 'severe' category on Sunday with an overall AQI reading of 382 - the worst recorded in the country for the day. Fifteen monitoring stations of the city recorded air quality levels in the 'severe' zone, having AQI readings over 400, data showed. The city also recorded its lowest nighttime temperature so far, as thick smog and haze shrouded it in a dense cover during the morning and evening hours. The minimum temperature recorded on Sunday was 16.5 degrees Celsius, 1.2 degrees above normal, according to the weather department. The national capital's 24-hour average Air Quality Index (AQI), recorded at 4 pm every day, stood at 382, worsening from 316 the previous day. The locations where air pollution levels reached the 'severe' zone are Anand Vihar, Ashok Vihar, Bawana, Dwarka, Jahangirpuri, Mundka, NSIT Dwarka, Najafgarh, Nehru Nagar, Okhla Phase 2, Patparganj, Punjabi Bagh, Rohini, Wazirpur and Vivek Vihar...
Post a Comment
Read more