Boeing Starliner's Delay In Returning To Earth Forces NASA To Postpone Crew-9 Mission Launch To ISS
Boeing Starliner's Delay In Returning To Earth Forces NASA To Postpone Crew-9 Mission Launch To ISS
"This adjustment allows more time for mission managers to finalize return planning for the agency's Boeing Crew Flight Test currently docked to the orbiting laboratory," NASA said in a statement. NASA said on Tuesday that it is now looking to launch the agency's crew-9 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) no earlier than Sept. 24 in a bid to give Boeing Starliner mission managers time to confirm its return to Earth.
NASA周二表示，为了给波音Starliner任务的经理们时间确认其回到地球，宇航局现在计划将该机构的Crew-9任务最早延迟到9月24日进行。
What Happened: Boeing's Starliner spacecraft is currently docked at the orbiting laboratory. Starliner, which launched with two astronauts to space in early June, was supposed to return in about eight days. However, technical issues identified with the spacecraft while docking have delayed a return journey. NASA and Boeing are currently evaluating the spacecraft's reliability for the return flight but no final decisions have been made, the space agency said on Tuesday.
发生了什么事：波音（Boeing）的Starliner航天器目前停靠在轨道实验室中。Starliner航天器于6月初与两名宇航员一起发射进入太空，本应在约8天后返回。然而，航天器对接期间发现了技术问题，这延迟了回程。宇航局和波音目前正在评估航天器的可靠性，以进行返航航班，但宇航局周二表示，尚未作出最终决定。
SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft was initially scheduled to launch four astronauts to the space station on Aug. 18 as part of the Crew-9 mission. However, the mission has now been delayed by over a month.
SpaceX旗下的Crew Dragon宇宙飞船最初计划于8月18日发射四名宇航员参加Crew-9任务，但此任务现已延迟了一个多月。
"This adjustment allows more time for mission managers to finalize return planning for the agency's Boeing Crew Flight Test currently docked to the orbiting laboratory," NASA said in a statement.
NASA在声明中表示：“这一调整为任务经理们提供了更多时间，以确定宇航局的波音船员飞行测试返回计划，该计划目前已经停靠在轨道实验室中。”
Why It Matters: Boeing's Starliner spacecraft has been marred by several delays since the start. The spacecraft was supposed to have its first uncrewed test flight in 2015 which was delayed up to 2019. The spacecraft then failed to achieve its intended orbit. In 2022, the spacecraft completed its first successful uncrewed flight to the International Space Station.
为什么重要：Boeing公司的Starliner航天器从一开始就遭遇多次延误。航天器本应在2015年进行首次无人测试飞行，但被推迟到2019年。随后航天器未能达到预期轨道。到2022年，该航天器完成了首次成功的无人飞行，前往国际空间站。
NASA awarded both Boeing and SpaceX contracts to enable transportation to and from the ISS after retiring its space shuttle. SpaceX sent its first crewed mission to the ISS in 2020 on its Dragon spacecraft and has since then undertaken multiple missions, overtaking its traditional rival.
NASA在停用太空船后，授予了波音和SpaceX运输往返国际空间站的合同。SpaceX于2020年将其Dragon宇宙飞船发送到国际空间站执行首个载人任务，此后还进行了多次任务，超越了传统竞争对手。
If the ongoing crewed flight test is successful, Boeing will become the next private company to shuttle astronauts to and from the ISS for NASA, like Elon Musk's SpaceX.
如果正在进行的载人试飞成功，波音将成为下一家为NASA接送航天员往返于ISS的私人公司，就像埃隆·马斯克的SpaceX一样。
Late last month, NASA's Commercial Crew Program manager Steve Stich said that while the focus is on returning the astronauts aboard Starliner itself, using SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft to return the astronauts in case the Starliner can't is also a possibility.
上个月底，NASA的商业机组计划经理史蒂夫·斯蒂奇（Steve Stich）表示，虽然重点是让星舰上的宇航员返回，但如果Starliner无法返回，使用SpaceX的Dragon宇宙飞船返回宇航员也是一种可能性。
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Photos courtesy: Shutterstock and NASA
图片由Shutterstock和美国国家航空航天局提供。
