 "NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams pose for a picture at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, ahead of Boeing's Starliner-1 Crew Flight Test (CFT) mission on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket to the International Space Station, in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S. File image/ Reuters")
Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, two NASA astronauts, are wrapping up an extraordinary nine-month mission aboard the International Space Station.
Their return to Earth is set for today, March 18, when they will disembark from the station.
Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore, and two other Crew-9 members will return to Earth on the SpaceX Dragon spaceship.
Originally scheduled for a quick eight-day test voyage aboard Boeing’s Starliner spaceship, their stay was prolonged due to unanticipated aircraft technical issues. Due to previous technical challenges with the Boeing Starliner aircraft, the astronauts currently aboard the International Space Station (ISS) had to stay for an extended period of time.
Their expedition, which began in June of last year, was originally designed as an 8-day test flight for Boeing’s Starliner. However, propulsion issues on the Starliner made it risky for their return flight, necessitating a change of plans. The astronauts were subsequently added to the Crew-9 mission.
The astronauts are now returning to Earth as part of the SpaceX Crew-9 mission, following a prolonged stay in orbit where they conducted over 150 scientific experiments. The Crew-10 mission, which arrived at the International Space Station (ISS) on March 17, made the crew exchange possible.
Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, together with astronauts Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov, will return on the SpaceX Crew Dragon spaceship. The 17-hour voyage will end with a splashdown off the Florida coast at 3:27 a.m. IST on March 19.
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More ShortsThis concludes their almost nine-month journey, and they will now prepare for the obstacles of readjusting to Earth’s gravity, according to NASA.