Sunita Williams stuck in space: From vapourisation upon re-entry to oxygen shortage - Why return is too risky

Sunita William stuck in space: The return spaceflight of NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore from the International Space Station is still stuck in a limbo. Sunita Williams' return to Earth was originally scheduled in June this year. But repeated glitches in Boeing Starliner spacecraft led to the extension of the space program for months.

There is also a possibility that Williams and Wilmore may have to rely on SpaceX's Crew Dragon for their return. Due to multiple technical glitches in Starliner, Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore's return flight in Boeing spacecraft can have dire consequences for the astronauts including their instant vapourisation upon re-entry, believes Rudy Ridolfi, a former commander of US military space systems.

What can go wrong if Sunita Williams rely on Starliner for return flight?

According to a CNBC-TV18 report, the space industry expert, Rudy Ridolfi, stated that there is a chance that the astronauts can be stranded in space for a long duration with just 96 hours of oxygen supply. Ridolfi mentioned three possible situations that can turn into realty if Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore are made to return to Earth in Boeing Starliner.

Running out of oxygen

The first scenarios highlights the situation of astronauts if they travel to Earth in Boeing Starliner. In the first situation, the spacecraft can become stranded in space with malfunctioning thrusters and only a 96-hour supply of oxygen, reported CNBC TV18 citing Ridolfi.

Forever stuck in space

Another scenario for the two NASA astronauts is that the spacecraft mught fail to re-enter the atmosphere together due to faulty alignment. In this case, the space craft may remain in space indefinitely as it would not be able to descend properly.

Vapourisation upon reentry

The third and last possible scenario of Sunita Williams' return in Starliner would be vapourisation upon entry. According to CNBC-TV18 report, Ridolfi expressed concern that the Starliner spacecraft may reenter the Earth's atmosphere at too steep an angle. Which may result in Starliner's heat shield failing under extreme friction and heat. The unfortunate incident may burn the spacecraft's surface and leading to the loss of astronauts.