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The troubled Boeing Starliner spacecraft has been making alarming noises while docked at the International Space Station, prompting astronaut Butch Wilmore to urgently report the issue to ground control.
Wilmore, along with fellow astronaut Suni Williams, has been aboard the ISS since the Starliner encountered problems after its maiden crewed voyage in June. A user first shared the incident on a NASA Space Flight forum.
In the recording, Wilmore asked NASA’s Houston team to identify a sound described as both a “pulsing” and a “clanging,” which a crew member likened to a “sonar ping.” As the strange noise gained attention on social media, NASA released a statement acknowledging the situation but assuring there was no cause for concern.
Read their statement below:
“The feedback from the speaker was the result of an audio configuration between the space station and the Starliner. The space station audio system is complex, allowing multiple spacecraft and modules to be interconnected, and it is common to experience noise and feedback… The speaker feedback Wilmore reported has no technical impact on the crew, Starliner, or station operations.”
NEWS 🚨: Astronauts are reporting that Boeing Starliner is emitting strange “sonar like noises”
This is the real audio of it:
pic.twitter.com/iMuIkFfj6U— Latest in space (@latestinspace) September 1, 2024
Boeing’s Starliner is set to undock on September 6 and return to Earth without a crew. Astronauts Wilmore and Williams, who were originally on an eight-day mission, will remain on the ISS until early next year when a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule will bring them home.
The astronauts were stranded after discovering that helium leaks on the Starliner, known before launch, were more extensive than expected, causing thruster malfunctions. The SpaceX mission is scheduled for February, leaving them on the ISS for nearly eight months, far exceeding their planned stay.
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