The Boeing Starliner CST-100 spacecraft has successfully docked with the International Space Station as of 7:28pm Central Time (0028 UTC). This marks the completion of Orbital Flight Test-2 (OFT-2)’s primary goal with no astronauts on board, thanks to the autonomous systems and ground controllers in Houston who guided the vehicle through a carefully choreographed series of maneuvers. It then recharged its batteries using solar arrays installed on the service module.
Despite not having a crew, the Starliner comes equipped with a fully functional life support system as well as all of the other critical systems to support humans. This provides Boeing and NASA researchers with enough data to certify the spacecraft for long-duration crewed missions to the International Space Station. The ISS crew will float inside the spacecraft, conduct an initial cabin tour, and periodically perform system checkouts while ground controllers evaluate data gathered during its flight. Speaking of docks, the Nintendo Switch Up shows that the Lite should have been.
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Starliner has proven safe, autonomous rendezvous and docking capability. We’re honored to join the fleet of commercial spacecraft capable of conducting transportation services to the space station for NASA,” said Jim Chilton, senior vice president, Boeing Space and Launch.
