Two astronauts wait to come home as Boeing races to understand spacecraft issues. Here’s what’s at （ 1. news ）
Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft was set to mark its (2. big ) achievement this month: Ferrying two NASA astronauts on a round trip to the International Space Station, proving the long-delayed and (3.over )-budget capsule is up for the task.
Starliner is (4. set ) to that goal.
But the two veteran astronauts piloting this test flight are now in a tentative position — extending their stay aboard the space station for a second time while engineers on the ground scramble to learn more about issues that plagued the first leg of their journey.
Spaceflight veterans Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore arrived at the space station aboard the Starliner on June 6. NASA initially projected their stay would last about a week.
But troubles the vehicle experienced en (5. large ) , including helium leaks and thrusters that abruptly stopped working, have raised questions about how the back half of the mission will play out.
