Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more.Boeing’s spaceflight program may reach a significant milestone Monday night with the launch of its Starliner spacecraft, carrying — at long last — two NASA astronauts to orbit.The mission, dubbed the Crew Flight Test, could take off as soon as Monday at 10:34 p.m. ET from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.Live coverage of the event will stream on NASA channels beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET Monday, according to the space agency.The occasion is a decade in the making — the culmination of Boeing’s efforts to develop a spacecraft worthy of ferrying astronauts to and from the International Space Station under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.Development hang-ups, test flight problems and other costly setbacks have slowed Starliner’s path to the launchpad. Meanwhile, Boeing’s rival under NASA’s commercial crew program — SpaceX — has become the go-to transportation provider for the space agency’s astronauts.Now, NASA and Boeing have finally deemed the Starliner spacecraft ready for its ultimate test: allowing astronauts to test-drive the vehicle in outer space.Veteran NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore will be on board Monday’s mission, riding Starliner to the International Space Station for a weeklong stay.Throughout their flight, Wilmore and Williams will conduct a series of tests, including briefly taking over the controls of the autonomous spacecraft and evaluating how the vehicle operates for astronauts.A smooth flight could be a winning moment for Boeing’s spaceflight program and the company overall, which has been in the hotseat due to issues with its commercial airplane division.H …
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[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nnSign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more.Boeing’s spaceflight program may reach a significant milestone Monday night with the launch of its Starliner spacecraft, carrying — at long last — two NASA astronauts to orbit.The mission, dubbed the Crew Flight Test, could take off as soon as Monday at 10:34 p.m. ET from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.Live coverage of the event will stream on NASA channels beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET Monday, according to the space agency.The occasion is a decade in the making — the culmination of Boeing’s efforts to develop a spacecraft worthy of ferrying astronauts to and from the International Space Station under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.Development hang-ups, test flight problems and other costly setbacks have slowed Starliner’s path to the launchpad. Meanwhile, Boeing’s rival under NASA’s commercial crew program — SpaceX — has become the go-to transportation provider for the space agency’s astronauts.Now, NASA and Boeing have finally deemed the Starliner spacecraft ready for its ultimate test: allowing astronauts to test-drive the vehicle in outer space.Veteran NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore will be on board Monday’s mission, riding Starliner to the International Space Station for a weeklong stay.Throughout their flight, Wilmore and Williams will conduct a series of tests, including briefly taking over the controls of the autonomous spacecraft and evaluating how the vehicle operates for astronauts.A smooth flight could be a winning moment for Boeing’s spaceflight program and the company overall, which has been in the hotseat due to issues with its commercial airplane division.H …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]
