Skip to main content

NASA’s ‘stuck’ astronauts have finally left the space station

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Undocking

After a nine-month stay that was only supposed to last eight days, NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore have finally left the International Space Station (ISS) and are on their way home.

Seated inside a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft alongside fellow NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, Williams and Wilmore undocked from the orbital outpost at 1:05 a.m. ET on Tuesday, March 18.

The crew are expected to splash down off the coast of Florida at around 5:57 p.m. ET later on Tuesday.

Williams and Wilmore arrived at the ISS in June 2024 on the first crewed flight of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. But technical problems with the vehicle raised safety concerns, prompting engineers to bring home the capsule without its two astronauts. The decision left Williams and Wilmore, both experienced astronauts, with no choice but to wait for NASA to make alternative arrangements for a ride home.

In an effort to avoid disrupting its usual crew rotation schedule that works on a six-month cycle, NASA held back two of the four astronauts on the Crew-9 flight that headed to the ISS in September last year. The decision meant the Crew Dragon’s two empty seats could be given to Williams and Wilmore on the vehicle’s return flight today.

Ahead of her departure, Williams was asked what she’d miss most about being in orbit. “Everything,” she said, before adding: “This has been [our] third flight to the ISS. We helped put it together, we’ve been up here watching it change. Just living here gives us a unique perspective — not just outside the window, obviously — but on how to solve problems. I don’t want to lose that spark of inspiration and perspective when I leave so I am going to have to bottle it up, somehow.”

Asked what she found most challenging about ending up on a mission that lasted far longer than intended, Williams responded: “It’s been a rollercoaster for [family and supporters], probably more than it has been for us.

“We’re here, we have a mission. We do what we have to do every day. The hardest thing has been not knowing when we’d come back. All of that uncertainty has been the most difficult part.”

Whiel some media reports suggested the pair had been “stranded” in space and were awaiting “rescue,” recently appointed NASA administrator Janet Petro and other NASA officials have maintained that the extended mission was managed in line with contingency planning for human spaceflight, adding that both astronauts were well prepared for a long-duration stay, and spent their time aboard the ISS contributing to scientific research.

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
SpaceX’s Starlink rival is about to launch more internet satellites — here’s how to watch
Amazon's KA-01 mission for Project Kuiper gets underway from the Space Coast.

Amazon is preparing to launch its second batch of Project Kuiper internet satellites to orbit as it seeks to build out a constellation to take on SpaceX’s Starlink service.

The KA-02 mission had been delayed due to inclement weather, but Amazon and rocket provider United Launch Alliance (ULA) appear confident that it can send the satellites skyward on Monday, June 23.

Read more
SpaceX Starlink rivalry grows as next Kuiper deployment nears
A ULA rocket launching Amazon's first Project Kuiper satellites in April 2025.

Amazon is about to send another batch of Project Kuiper internet satellites to orbit as it seeks to take on SpaceX’s Starlink service to provide broadband internet to customers around the world.

The tech giant has a long way to go before it has any hope of effectively challenging Starlink, but with its second launch set for next week, progress is being made toward its goal.

Read more
SpaceX just called off Wednesday’s crewed launch to the ISS
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket waits to launch the Ax-4 mission to the space station.

SpaceX has just announced that it’s standing down from tomorrow’s Falcon 9 launch of Axiom Space’s Ax-4 crew to the International Space Station (ISS). A new target launch date has yet to be announced.

In a post on X on Tuesday evening, SpaceX said its engineers need more time to repair the liquid oxygen leak identified during earlier booster inspections, and therefore would not be launching on June 11. Another plan to launch Ax-4 was also called off 24 hours earlier due to strong winds in the ascent corridor.

Read more