Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore return to Earth after 9 months at space station

Astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore returned to Earth safely Tuesday evening on a SpaceX capsule after being stranded at the International Space Station (ISS) for 9 months. 

The capsule was also carrying two other astronauts Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov, who had travelled to the ISS in September as part of SpaceX’s Crew 9 mission.

NASA said that the crew is doing great and after spending some time in recovery will head to the Johnson Space Centre in Houston to reunite with their families. 

SpaceX’s capsule, which left NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre on Friday, reached the ISS on Sunday with four astronauts on board. After a crew swap with Williams, Wilmore, Hague and Gurbanov, the capsule left  the space station on Tuesday and splashed down off the coast of Florida in the Gulf of Mexico after a 17-hour journey. 

Williams and Wilmore arrived at the ISS in June 2024 on a mission to test Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner capsule. The crew was expected to return after 8- 10 days in the same capsule after testing its docking and operational capabilities. 

As the Starliner capsule approached the space station, its reaction control thrusters malfunctioned and helium leaks were detected. This forced the crew to cancel their return journey and stay at the ISS. The Starliner capsule, which was designed to operate autonomously, was returned unmanned to Earth in September 2024. 

The duo’s return was delayed further as NASA had to ensure the ISS had a manned crew. ISS requires regular maintenance and astronauts have to ensure all its life support systems and components are functioning properly. The crew on ISS has to replace faulty components, maintain computer networks, and do spacewalks for external repairs. 

“We are thrilled to have Suni, Butch, Nick, and Aleksandr home after their months-long mission conducting vital science, technology demonstrations, and maintenance aboard the International Space Station,” Janet Petro, acting Administrator of NASA, said in a press release.  

Williams conducted two spacewalks with Wilmore and Hague to remove a radio frequency group antenna assembly, collect samples from the station’s external surface, and install patches to cover damaged areas of light filters on an X-ray telescope.  

According to NASA, Williams now holds the record for female astronaut spacewalking time and is ranked fourth on the list of highest spacewalk duration. She spent 62 hours and 6 minutes outside of the station. Williams and Wilmore traveled 121,347,491 miles during their mission, spent 286 days in space, and completed 4,576 Earth orbits. 

Further, NASA said that Williams and Wilmore carried out over 150 scientific experiments amounting to more than 900 hours of research. It included research on plant growth and quality, analysis of space samples to see if microorganisms can survive in space, and testing of light systems to help astronauts maintain circadian rhythms. 

Image credit: NASA