SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft successfully docked at the International Space Station on Sunday, clearing the way for stranded US astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to return home after more than nine months in space.
The Crew-10 mission arrived at the ISS around 29 hours after launching from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center on Friday evening, carrying NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Russian cosmonaut Kirill Peskov.
A livestream of their arrival showed joyous scenes as they entered the ISS and embraced the Expedition 72 crew members — including Wilmore and Williams — on board.
Wilmore and Williams’ mission, which had been scheduled to last just eight days, has seen them stranded on the ISS since June 2024.
NASA and Boeing had identified helium leaks and issues with the thrusters of the Starliner spacecraft that took the pair to the ISS as it approached the space station, leading the agency to decide to return it uncrewed to minimize risk and gather data.
Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft safely returned to Earth in September, touching down at the White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico.
Wilmore and Williams have spent their extended time on the ISS supporting station research, maintenance, and Starliner system testing and data analysis, according to NASA.
The pair will return to earth no earlier than Wednesday, March 19, following a handover period with the Crew-10 members, the agency said.
They will be joined by American astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, who arrived in September.
The Crew-10 astronauts are set to spend roughly the next six months on the ISS, carrying out scientific research and testing to help prepare humans for future missions to space.
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