NASA plans to retry launch for returning astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to Earth on Friday.

The decision to delay the Wednesday launch implies that NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams will have to stay in space for at least an additional two days before they can commence their journey back to Earth.

Wilmore and Williams had arrived at the ISS in June for a mission that was not supposed to last more than 10 days, but they had to extend their stay after their Boeing Starliner spacecraft experienced problems with propulsion.

Wilmore and Williams are expected to return to Earth aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft currently docked at the ISS, after a team comprising American, Japanese, and Russian astronauts arrives to replace them.

NASA stated that Wednesday’s launch was canceled at the Kennedy Space Center due to a hydraulic system issue with a ground support clamp arm for the Falcon 9 rocket.

The space agency is currently addressing the hydraulic system issue and aims to reattempt the launch on Friday.

The Crew-10 team includes NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, Japan’s Takuya Onishi, and Russia’s Kirill Peskov.

If the mission proceeds as planned on Friday, Wilmore and Williams may leave the ISS by March 19, according to NASA.

During a call with reporters this month, Williams expressed her excitement about returning to her family.

“For them, it’s been quite an ups and downs, maybe even more so than for us,” Williams said. “We’re here on a mission, and every day is different – it’s exciting because we’re in space, and it’s a lot of fun.”