NASA has confirmed that astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who have been on the International Space Station (ISS) for over nine months, will return to Earth on Tuesday, March 18, aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule.
Their mission was originally intended to last about eight days but was extended due to technical issues with the Boeing Starliner spacecraft they used to reach the ISS.
The Starliner experienced helium leaks and thruster problems, leading NASA to return it to Earth uncrewed in September.
As a result, Wilmore and Williams were integrated into the ISS’s long-duration mission and will now return with NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov.
The return journey was initially scheduled for Wednesday but was moved forward to Tuesday due to favourable weather conditions.
The splashdown is expected off the coast of Florida at approximately 5:57 PM ET. NASA will broadcast the return live, starting with preparations for the Dragon capsule’s departure from the ISS.
Wilmore and Williams’ extended stay has garnered significant attention, with some referring to them as “stranded” despite NASA’s efforts to incorporate them into the crew rotation plan. Their mission marks one of the longer-than-usual stays on the ISS, though it is much shorter than the U.S. record of 371 days set by Frank Rubio in 2023.
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