Sunita Williams undergoes hearing test in space after eye scans as Starliner saga continues

NASA astronaut Sunita Williams underwent a hearing test on Tuesday, the US space agency said in a press release. The test was standard, the agency said, as she remains in space amid uncertainty over the Starliner spacecraft's return to Earth.

Williams and her colleague Butch Wilmore took turns for a standard hearing test. Astronauts in space undergo regular checkups to understand the impact of microgravity on the human body and also to keep a check on their' health status.

Earlier this August, the cornea, retina, and lens of Sunita Williams were scanned using standard medical imaging hardware.

Previously, NASA informing that Starliner pilot Sunita Williams and commander Butch Wilmore participated in vein scans using the Ultrasound 2 device. 

The NASA astronauts had the taken turns imaging each other’s neck, shoulder, and leg veins as doctors on the ground monitored the process in real-time.

Astronauts are at risk of hearing loss or vision impairment during their long time in space. NASA said in one of their earlier reports that a number of astronauts who have returned to Earth after long stays aboard the space station reported a "subjective change in their eyesight". 

Meanwhile, the European Space agency said the International Space Station can be a noisy place. NASA also explains that noise exposure in spaceflight can negatively impact hearing.

The Starliner saga

Williams and Wilmore had launched aboard Boeing's Starliner on June 5 and have been in space since. They scripted history by becoming the first people to fly aboard the Starliner spacecraft as part of NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) mission.

Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore were supposed to return by mid-June. However, thruster anomalies, software issues and helium leaks have delayed their return back to the Earth. The Starliner mission now overlaps with Expedition 71 mission.

NASA and Boeing said their priority is to bring back the two astronauts on Starliner, but they are weighing other options in case Starliner is not fit for the return mission. One of those options is to bring the duo on a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft in 2025. NASA officials said they are still mulling options and studying the root cause of the Starliner's issue. They have not set a return date yet.

The Boeing Crew Flight Test crew – Sunita Williams and Butch – have been working with the Expedition 71 crew at the International Space Station to carry out various studies and space research. Meanwhile, NASA and Boeing teams on ground and in space have been analysing data from recent ground and spacecraft testing as they evaluate the Starliner spacecraft’s propulsion system during NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test mission.