NASA’s Crew-10 mission marks the highly anticipated return of astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, ending their nine-month stay on the International Space Station. In a remarkable crew-swap mission, a SpaceX Dragon capsule successfully transported four astronauts to the ISS, making way for Wilmore and Williams to return home. This monumental event occurred approximately 29 hours after the astronauts launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The successful docking of the Crew-10 astronauts’ SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule with the ISS at 12:04 AM ET (04:04 GMT) on Sunday signifies a critical milestone. The astronauts were warmly welcomed by the existing seven-member crew on the station, which included Wilmore and Williams. Both are experienced NASA astronauts and retired Navy test pilots who have been residing on the station since June.

Originally scheduled for a typical six-month rotation, Wilmore and Williams experienced an unforeseen extended stay due to a Boeing Starliner spacecraft malfunction that occurred during its maiden crewed voyage. This issue presented significant challenges, as the spacecraft became unfit for transporting them back to Earth.

Although their prolonged stay was considerably longer than the standard duration for ISS rotations, it falls short of the record set by NASA astronaut Frank Rubio, who spent 371 consecutive days on the ISS in 2023. Similarly, the world record for continuous space station residence is held by Russian astronaut Valeri Polyakov, who spent an impressive 437 days on board the Mir space station.

The Crew-10 mission not only represents a routine crew rotation flight but also a long-awaited stride towards bringing Wilmore and Williams back to Earth. This plan, initially conceived by NASA, has gained even greater significance since President Donald Trump assumed office in January.

Wilmore and Williams are scheduled to depart the ISS on Wednesday, at the earliest, in the company of NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian astronaut Aleksandr Gorbunov. Hague and Gorbunov arrived at the ISS in September aboard a Crew Dragon craft, which has remained stationed at the ISS with two empty seats reserved for Wilmore and Williams.

The Crew-10 crew, set to spend approximately six months on the station, comprises NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, Japanese astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Russian astronaut Kirill Peskov. This mission not only signifies the return of Wilmore and Williams but also ensures the continuation of important astronomical research and exploration aboard the International Space Station.

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/3/16/stranded-nasa-astronauts-to-return-as-spacex-dragon-docks-with-iss?traffic_source=rss