Contents:
Boeing finally managed to launch their Starliner spacecraft yesterday morning, executing a successful takeoff on their third attempt.
Boeing has been trying to launch Starliner for a while, as they have previously attempted launches on May 6 and June 1. Starliner is a crewed spacecraft mounted on an Atlas V rocket, and it is Boeing's first successful crewed flight, carrying NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams. June 5 or June 6 were the earliest windows after their failed launch on June 1 due to a computer issue, and since weather at their launchpad in Cape Canaveral, Florida was very favorable yesterday, they decided to go ahead with the mission.
The spacecraft's destination is the International Space Station, which it should be reaching around 12:15 pm EDT later today. The astronauts will spend eight days at the space station before returning to Earth, living among the numerous personnel aboard the ISS to experience life in space for the first time. However, their stay may last longer, as weather conditions need to be favorable for them to return to Earth.
Also, the Starliner is carrying a pump that is needed to fix the station's urine processor. Due to the lack of water in space, astronaut urine is recycled into drinking water through a long process involving lots of complex machinery. On May 29, the urine processor -- the first step in the water purification process -- failed, meaning that the urine now has to be stored in containers so that it can be recycled into the system once the pump is replaced.
The two astronauts will test some new capabilities on the Starliner like manual controls and thruster performance before returning to Earth by June 14 or later. Boeing opted for a design that allows them to touch down on land, similar to SpaceX's Dragon, so the astronauts will parachute into one of multiple specific desert areas in the southwest United States.
This mission is crucial for Boeing, as they are racing against Elon Musk's SpaceX to become NASA's number one choice for future space missions. However, SpaceX has the jump on them-- as a result of Boeing's consistent issues during missions recently, SpaceX has experienced lots of success with their Dragon mission and other cargo flights. In fact, SpaceX is launching their fourth test flight of their massive Starship rocket in one hour! You can watch the launch live here. Due to this, NASA is already relying on SpaceX for a lot of their upcoming missions, which means that Boeing is going to have to do some catching up.
Fact of the Day (Reader's Digest): When ancient Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses IV was mummified, he had his eyes replaced with onions. This was because onions were believed to represent eternal life due to their numerous layers-- and the whole point of mummification was to grant eternal life to the dead.
Quote of the Day (Gracious Quotes): The only time you should look back in life is to see how far you have come. (Kevin Hart)
Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster): Affluent (adj) - Someone described as affluent has a large amount of money and owns many expensive things. Something, such as a place or institution, described as affluent is similarly rich or wealthy.
In a Sentence: The affluent suburb sports some of the finest public schools in the county owing to its considerable tax base.
Comments