Aerospace giant Boeing is set to attempt its second uncrewed flight to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of a test to show it can get to and from the orbiting lab safely.
The CST-100 Starliner capsule will carry supplies and test equipment to the space station but the main aim of the mission will be to demonstrate that the spacecraft can launch, dock, re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere and perform a desert landing safely.
Nasa and Boeing are targeting July 30 for the lift-off, which will take place at the Kennedy Space Centre at Cape Canaveral in Florida.
If the mission is successful, it will pave the way for Starliner to become a “taxi service” for Nasa, ferrying astronauts to and from the space station.