America has taken another step towards being able to launch its astronauts into orbit again, a capability it’s not had for nearly nine years. The Boeing company has launched a test capsule towards the International Space Station (ISS).

Known as Starliner, the vehicle is flying uncrewed on this occasion. However, there are indications that the launch has not gone as planned, as the capsule has failed so far to make the next stage to the ISS. The capsule left the Earth’s atmosphere but its engines then did not fire – the next step needed to take it on to the space station. It is “safe and stable” in orbit, a Boeing statement said, but engineers are now trying to figure out how to proceed. Nasa will hold a press conference at 09:00 local time (14:00 GMT).(BBC)…[+]