Starliner set to return without Sunita Williams: When and where to watch undocking, re-entry, landing on Earth

All eyes are on Boeing's Starliner, which will make a return journey to Earth in the wee hours of Saturday, September 7. Starliner had faced technical issues during its flight to the International Space Station (ISS) on June 5. After months of delay, Starliner will leave, or undock from the ISS, and land in New Mexico if all goes well.

It will be a six-hour journey back to Earth. The Starliner will return uncrewed, which means it won't bring back the two NASA astronauts -- Sunita Williams and Butch Willmore – who had launched aboard the spacecraft on June 5.

Here's when and where to watch Starliner undock from the ISS, re-enter the Earth's atmosphere, and land in Mexico.

First NASA will hold a "Go"-"No Go" poll 45 minutes before the undocking. If officials give a go-ahead:

1. Starliner will proceed with undocking at 6:04 pm EDT on Friday, September 6, or 3:30 am IST on Saturday. Live streaming will begin at 3:15 am IST.

One can watch LIVE on NASA's Youtube channel and NASA website. Tap here and here for link

You can track Boeing's YouTube channel too. Tap here for Link

2. According to NASA, after undocking, Starliner will take about six hours to reach the landing zone at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico. The spacecraft will touch down about 12:03 am EDT on Saturday, September 7, or 9:30 am IS on Saturday. Livestreaming will start at 8:20 am IST.

Tap here to watch NASA's Boeing Crew Flight Test Re-entry and Landing

Starliner has been is "packed" and it's hatch was closed by Sunita and Butch on Thursday. When it's time to come home, "the docking mechanism disengages, letting Starliner slowly drift away from the space station," Boeing explained. It added that after a flyaround inspection, Starliner will conduct a series of burns to take it safely away and position it for deorbit.

During the landing, "heat shields jettison, parachutes deploy and airbags inflate, eventually ending in a first for an American orbital capsule: a safe landing on solid ground.

Boeing said, “Starliner is built not just to weather those conditions, but to conquer them.”

Sunita Williams in Space

As Starliner gears up for return journey, its crew members Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore will remain aboard the International Space station and return home in February 2025 aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft in February 2025.

NASA astronauts Barry "Butch" Wilmore and Sunita "Suni" Williams launched aboard Boeing's Starliner spacecraft on June 5 for its first crewed flight, arriving at the space station on June 6. It was expected that the two astronauts would have returned in the same flight.

As Starliner approached the orbiting laboratory, NASA and Boeing identified helium leaks and experienced issues with the spacecraft reaction control thrusters.

For the safety of the astronauts, NASA announced on August 24 that Starliner will return to Earth from the station without a crew.

(With inputs from agencies)