Boeing forced to scrub first crewed Starliner launch to the space station

Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft blasted off with NASA astronauts onboard for the first time on Monday, kicking off a high-stakes test flight to the space station.

NASA and Boeing were forced to stand down from an attempted launch to the International Space Station on Monday because of a last-minute issue that cropped up with a valve on the spacecraft’s rocket.

Boeing’s Starliner capsule had been scheduled to lift off at 10:34 p.m. ET from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on its first crewed test flight. NASA astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita Williams were on board the capsule and strapped into their seats when the launch attempt was called off, roughly two hours ahead of the planned liftoff.

NASA announced early Tuesday that a second attempt would occur no earlier than Friday.

Mission controllers declared Monday’s launch “scrub” after an anomaly was detected on a valve on United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V rocket, which the Starliner capsule was to ride into orbit.

United Launch Alliance officials said in a post on X that the launch attempt was scrapped “out of an abundance of caution for the safety of the flight and pad crew,” adding that the team needs “additional time to complete a full assessment.”

https://www.nbcnews.com/science/space/boeing-scrubs-starliner-crewed-launch-rcna150843

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