波音太空船上的有毒燃料洩漏將使美國太空人在地上稍長時間

波音太空船上的有毒燃料洩漏將使美國太空人在地上稍長時間
A Toxic Fuel Leak on Boeing’s Spacecraft Will Ground U.S. Astronauts a Little Longer

JULY 23, 2018

Dripping toxic chemicals fouled an attempt to test the rocket engines on a Boeing spacecraft designed to replace the space shuttle and carry astronauts to the International Space Station next year.

The anomaly validates warnings that neither Boeing nor its rival SpaceX will be able to field operational spacecraft in time to maintain a steady flow of astronauts to the orbital lab next year, which NASA officials say could put the station in danger. The U.S. space agency is paying the two private companies more than $6.5 billion to develop low-cost, reliable space transportation for people.

Boeing is currently developing a space capsule called the CST-100 Starliner to fly into space on top of an Atlas V rocket booster. Spacecraft are designed to separate from their rocket booster in an emergency, allowing human passengers a chance to escape if something goes wrong.

The Starliner is equipped with four small rocket engines built by Aerojet Rocketdyne. They are mounted on the bottom of the spacecraft called the “service module” that contains the technical infrastructure to support the crew inside the capsule. In May, Boeing brought the service module to a missile-test facility, aiming to demonstrate that it could carry the astronauts away from an emergency.

https://www.nextgov.com/emerging-tech/2018/07/toxic-fuel-leak-boeings-spacecraft-will-ground-us-astronauts-little-longer/149970/