NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore have officially departed the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft on Tuesday, marking the end of their unexpected nine-month stay in orbit.
Return Journey and Splashdown Schedule
The astronauts have begun their 17-hour journey back to Earth, with a scheduled splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico at 3:30 AM IST on Thursday. Their return marks the end of an extended mission that was initially intended to last only a week.
NASA and SpaceX Coordinate Safe Return
NASA and SpaceX mission managers held evaluations over the weekend to assess weather conditions and splashdown safety off the Florida coast. NASA confirmed that the return date was moved up due to favorable weather conditions on Tuesday, March 18. The earlier return allows for necessary handover operations at the ISS while ensuring a safe journey before potential bad weather later in the week.
NASA emphasized that Dragon’s undocking depends on multiple factors, including:
- Spacecraft readiness
- Recovery team preparedness
- Prevailing sea conditions
New Crew Arrives at ISS
Meanwhile, as Williams and Wilmore depart, SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft successfully docked with the ISS, bringing in:
- NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers
- JAXA astronaut Takuya Onishi (Japan)
- Russian cosmonaut Kirill Peskov
Mission Background: Extended Stay Due to Starliner Issues
Williams and Wilmore were originally part of the Crew-9 mission and had planned for a one-week stay at the ISS after arriving in June 2023. However, their return was delayed due to technical failures with Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft.
In June 2023, as Starliner approached the space station, engineers detected:
- Helium leaks
- Reaction control thruster malfunctions
These issues prompted NASA to return Starliner to Earth unmanned in September, leaving Williams and Wilmore stranded at the ISS for nine months until their safe return aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon.
This mission highlights the complexities of space travel, especially as NASA and private space agencies work toward long-term crewed missions. With Williams and Wilmore’s safe return, NASA will conduct post-mission evaluations to analyze the challenges and lessons learned from their extended ISS stay.
