The launch attempt was called off roughly two hours ahead of the planned liftoff.

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.

A new launch date has not yet been announced.

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

  • bmsok@lemmy.world
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    10 months ago

    Good on NASA for scrubbing the launch to keep both the astronauts and the launch team safe. That’s how it’s supposed to work.

    • Ensign_Crab@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      Turns out, if your contractor kills enough people with their slapdash products, even go fever has its limits.

    • nonailsleft@lemm.ee
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      10 months ago

      No it’s not. They could have learned a ton from this probably fatal experiment

          • bmsok@lemmy.world
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            10 months ago

            But not today, thankfully. Thats what makes every scrubbed launch a success.

            Challenger and Colombia were particularly horrific because people warned that there were issues and were still given the green light for launch and reentry, respectively.

            You can’t do this stuff without making some mistakes and learning from them. But everyone did their job well this evening to ensure everyone’s safety.

            • BigFig@lemmy.world
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              10 months ago

              Yeah not sure why I’m getting down votes. It’s a fact, people have died and it was due to lax adherence to those safety standards. Today’s launch scrub is exactly what should happen every time. A single tiny thing out of place should be a scrub. These are people’s lives on the line.

              • bmsok@lemmy.world
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                10 months ago

                I misinterpreted where you were coming from with your comment. My apologies. I think we’re on the same page. Safety first.

      • NightAuthor@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        Seems like this comment has a pretty solid coat of sarcasm. But at least 24 colorblind people can’t tell.

        • mercano@lemmy.world
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          10 months ago

          Boeing’s share in the company came from the Delta rocket though, which was retired last month. (FWIW, Delta was originally a Douglas design, going back to the late 50’s, but Boeing got it through mergers.)

  • MataVatnik@lemmy.world
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    10 months ago

    I’ve been saying this for years now. Boeing is going to kill NASA astronauts if they are allowed to get their way.

  • mr_robot@lemmy.world
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    10 months ago

    As much as I’d love to pile on Boeing, the article states the launch was scrubbed due to an issue with ULA’s rocket not the Boeing capsule payload.

    • derf82@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      ULA is a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed, however.

      But, again, Boeing spacecraft is a very separate division than commercial aircraft.

    • asmoranomar@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      And even if it was, it would be the right move. The last thing we want is to stop risk management because there’s only 2 hours left and the door hasn’t fallen off so far.

  • werefreeatlast@lemmy.world
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    10 months ago

    Hopefully they don’t forget to report when Max Q happens… It’s very important to explain what it is. SECO and MECO and the number 7 are also getting up there in importance for space flight.

      • werefreeatlast@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        Yes Bob, indeed, for those of you watching at home, Max Q is the name of the guy sitting at the top of the rocket holding the antenna trying to guide the…no wait, it’s when the vehicle is going through the maximum aerodynamic pressure state. That’s right! It’s Rick, Rick Peterman holding up the antenna this morning. Back to you guys in the studio!