Although yesterday's epic SpaceX Starship launch took some of the spotlight, another important event took place in near space yesterday. The Boeing Starliner Calypso spacecraft docked with the International Space Station. Astronauts Barry Y. Wilmore and Sunita Williams were greeted on board by the mixed crew of Expedition 71.
The Boeing Starliner Calypso's approach to the ISS was caused by a leak of helium used to purge the fuel tanks of the maneuvering engines from three valves. The valves were temporarily isolated and reopened just before docking. After a series of tests, four of the five maneuvering engines were restored, which was sufficient for a successful docking.
Currently, there are 9 astronauts on the ISS - 7 members of Expedition 71 and two guests, Wilmore and Williams, who are due to leave the station in a few days. Currently, there are three manned spacecraft docked to the ISS - Soyuz MS-25, Crew Dragon Endeavour (SpaceX Crew-8 mission) and Boeing Starliner Calypso (Boeing Crewed Flight Test), as well as three cargo ships - Cygnus NG-20, Progress MS-26 and Progress MS-27.