NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have returned to Earth following an extensive nine-month mission in space.
They splashed down in a SpaceX Dragon capsule off the coast of Florida on the evening of March 18, concluding a 17-hour descent. Alongside them were NASA’s Nick Hague and Russia’s Aleksandr Gorbunov.
Within an hour of landing, the astronauts emerged from their capsule, smiling and waving at cameras as they were transported in reclining stretchers for routine medical evaluations.
“The crew’s doing great,” said Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, during a news conference.
This mission, initially planned for just eight days, has now come to a close.
“It is fantastic to have Crew 9 back home; the landing was beautiful,” stated Joel Montalbano, deputy associate administrator of NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate. He expressed gratitude for the astronauts’ resilience and flexibility, noting that SpaceX has been an excellent partner.
Helen Sharman, Britain’s first astronaut, added, “The most important thing will be reuniting with friends and family, especially those they planned to spend Christmas with. They can now catch up on missed celebrations, birthdays, and important events.”
The journey for Butch and Suni began in June 2024 when they participated in the inaugural crewed test flight of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. However, the capsule encountered several technical issues during its journey to the International Space Station (ISS), leading to the decision to keep the astronauts aboard due to safety concerns.
While Starliner safely returned to Earth empty in early September, Wilmore and Williams needed alternative transportation for their return. NASA opted for the next scheduled SpaceX flight, which arrived at the ISS later that month. This mission had only two astronauts onboard instead of four, leaving space available for Butch and Suni’s return.
The only drawback was that this mission was intended to last six months, extending the astronauts’ stay until now.
Throughout their prolonged time in space, Wilmore and Williams embraced their extended mission, conducting a wide range of experiments and spacewalks, with Suni even setting a record for the most hours spent outside the space station by a woman. During Christmas, the crew celebrated the holiday in style, donning Santa hats and reindeer antlers, sending festive greetings for a holiday they had originally planned to spend at home.
Now that the astronauts are back on Earth, they will be taken to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, where medical experts will conduct evaluations.
