If everything goes according to plan, the Starliner will land in New Mexico on Wednesday evening, ending its landmark test flight to the International Space Station for NASA.
On Friday, May 20th, Starliner arrived at the International Space Station, a day after launching on Orbital Flight Test 2, an uncrewed shakeout mission designed to show that the capsule is ready to start carrying astronauts to and from the station for NASA.
Boeing and NASA said that Starliner will stay in the lab for four to five days. The capsule is scheduled to leave the International Space Station on Wednesday at 2:36 p.m. There was a landing at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico at 6:49 pm. The same day.
Live updates: Boeing Starliner Orbital Flight Test 2 mission to ISS
Related: Boeing's Starliner OFT-2 test flight for NASA in amazing photos
When the time comes, you can watch all of this action at Space.com.
The OFT-2 team is aiming for a touchdown at White Sands Space Harbor, a spaceport that once served as a runway for the space shuttle program. NASA officials said in an update this afternoon that a backup landing opportunity is available on Friday if bad weather or other factors make a Wednesday return impractical.
The original OFT mission was completed in December of last year when Starliner came down at White Sands Space Harbor. The capsule had to fly OFT-2 as a makeup flight because Starliners had a series of problems on that flight.
Before astronauts can climb aboard, Starliner must clear OFT-2. If the departure and landing go well, and the post-flight checks do not show any serious issues, the capsule could end up flying crews before the end of the year, according to Boeing and NASA officials.
NASA has tapped other companies to fly its astronauts to and from space. A similar contract is held by the same company that has already launched four crewed missions to the International Space Station.
Two of the landing sites for Starliner were within the White Sands Missile Range. Willcox Playa in southeastern Arizona was one of the others.
Mike Wall is the author of Out There, a book about the search for alien life. You can follow him on social media. Follow us on social media.
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