NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams safely returned to Earth on Tuesday, splashing down off the coast of Florida in a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule after a nine-month mission that was originally planned to last just one week, according to Reuters.
Their return marked the end of a prolonged and challenging space mission, overshadowed by technical issues with Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, which had initially carried them to the International Space Station (ISS).
Mission marred by delays
Wilmore and Williams, both veteran NASA astronauts and retired US Navy test pilots, launched aboard Boeing’s Starliner in June for what was intended to be an eight-day test flight. However, problems with the spacecraft’s propulsion system forced NASA to extend their stay on the ISS and eventually arrange their return via a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule.
The astronauts undocked from the ISS at 1:05 a.m. ET on Tuesday, embarking on a 17-hour journey back to Earth. They were part of NASA’s Crew-9 rotation mission, alongside two other astronauts. The capsule re-entered Earth’s atmosphere at a staggering speed of 17,000 mph (27,359 kph), slowing to 17 mph (27 kph) before splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico at 5:57 p.m. ET under clear skies.
The astronauts will now undergo routine health checks at NASA’s Johnson Space Centre in Houston before reuniting with their families.
“They will get some well-deserved time off, well-deserved time with their families,” said Steve Stich, NASA’s Commercial Crew Programme chief.
Political and technical challenges
The mission became a political spectacle after US President Donald Trump, upon taking office in January, called for the astronauts’ swift return, alleging that former President Joe Biden had “abandoned” them on the ISS for political reasons. NASA responded by accelerating the Crew-9 replacement mission, swapping a delayed SpaceX capsule for one that was ready sooner and expediting safety reviews.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, a close adviser to Trump, echoed the call for an earlier return, claiming the Biden administration had rejected a SpaceX offer to provide a dedicated rescue mission last year. However, NASA officials maintained that the astronauts needed to remain on the ISS to ensure adequate staffing and that a dedicated rescue mission was neither budgeted nor necessary.
Boeing’s Starliner, intended to compete with SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, faced significant setbacks during this mission, casting doubt on its future. Steve Stich indicated that Starliner might need to conduct another uncrewed test flight before it can routinely carry astronauts.
Life on ISS
During their 286-day stay on the ISS, Wilmore and Williams conducted approximately 150 scientific experiments. While their mission exceeded the average six-month ISS stay, it fell short of the US record held by Frank Rubio, who spent 371 days in space due to a coolant leak on a Russian spacecraft.
Williams, completing her third spaceflight, has now spent a cumulative 608 days in space, the second-highest total for any US astronaut after Peggy Whitson’s 675 days. Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko holds the world record with 878 cumulative days in space.
Reflecting on their extended mission, Wilmore emphasised the importance of contingency planning in human spaceflight.
We came prepared to stay long, even though we planned to stay short. That’s what your nation’s human spaceflight programme’s all about. Planning for unknown, unexpected contingencies. And we did that.
