The space agency announced on Tuesday that SpaceX will switch capsules for upcoming astronaut flights to bring Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams home as early as mid-March, rather than in late March or as late as April. That would cut at least a couple of weeks off their long stay on the International Space Station (ISS), which hit the eight-month mark last week.
The test pilots were scheduled to return in June on Boeing’s Starliner capsule after a week-long test flight to the ISS. During the mission, however, the Starliner developed serious technical problems, including helium leaks and engine malfunctions. As a result, NASA decided not to risk the astronauts’ lives and returned the capsule empty – without a crew.
Astronauts stayed on the ISS, and their return NASA began to organise with the help of SpaceX. However, due to delays with the preparation of a new ship Crew Dragon mission Wilmore and Williams delayed.
As a result, NASA decided to use the already proven capsule Crew Dragon, and now the launch is scheduled for March 12. This craft has already been handed over to a private team that expects to launch this spring.
In this operation, NASA prefers to send a new crew to the station first before returning the old one. It will include two NASA astronauts, one Japanese astronaut and one Russian astronaut.
