HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. - Boeing has shipped a CST-100 Starliner Structural Test Article (STA) from its Commercial Crew and Cargo Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida to Huntington Beach, California, for testing.
It joined test versions of the service module, the launch vehicle adapter truss structure and other hardware that make up the upper stage of the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Testing of the article began shortly after it arrived to Boeing’s Test and Evaluation facility. The first test involved pressurizing the interior of the crew module to 1.5 times the maximum pressure a Starliner spacecraft would face during ascent, orbit, re-entry and landing for missions to and from the International Space Station.
Testing the STA will allow engineers to study how the Starliner will function during operations. According to NASA, Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft will experience a variety of tremendous internal and external forces during missions to and from the International Space Station. Because of the tests, when the Starliner launches in 2018, it won’t be the first time the spacecraft has encountered these forces.
Boeing’s facilities in southern California are outfitted with numerous test chambers that routinely evaluate spacecraft and other vehicles in a variety of environments to make sure they can handle the demands of flight.
Boeing introduced the CST-100 in 2010 to carry astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) under NASA's Commercial Crew Development (CCDev) program. Since then, Boeing has made steady progress developing the vehicle under a series of three development contracts with NASA. Boeing's CST-100 effort culminated in the company being awarded a contract under the Commercial Crew Transportation Capability (CCtCap) program worth $4.2 billion.
In 2016, Boeing experienced delays on the program. The company lowered weight, improved aerodynamics, and sorted out supply chain issues. While these issues are largely resolved, they delayed the first launch of the CST-100 to 2018 from 2017.
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