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Boeing still seeking why Starliner's valves froze on the launchpad - The Washington Post
Sep 24, 2021 1 min, 11 secs
Several days after Boeing discovered the latest problem with its Starliner spacecraft, it removed the capsule from the rocket and returned it to the factory where engineers have been playing detective, trying to figure out what went wrong.

Kathy Lueders, who runs one of NASA’s human exploration mission directorates, said this week that the company might even have to swap out the spacecraft’s service module for a new one, which would mark a significant change.

As for whether Boeing would be able to attempt another launch this year, she said, “My gut is it would probably more likely be next year.”.

It also noted that Boeing would set a new launch date after its investigation was complete, saying “root cause analysis and corrective action plan help us define the appropriate path back to the launchpad.”.

Last week, it also completed the first-ever all-civilian spaceflight to orbit, known as Inspiration4, where a crew of four spent three days in space.

Leading up to the launch, John Vollmer, a Boeing vice president, said this summer that he knew how high the stakes were this time.

“Cautiously optimistic is a good way to describe how the team is feeling,” Vollmer said three days after engineers discovered the issue.

Boeing and NASA had been exploring whether the humid Florida air, or a rainstorm just before the first launch date attempt may have mixed water with the propellant’s oxidizer

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