NASA astronauts stranded in space for 9 months finally begin journey back to Earth
"The pair of NASA astronauts marooned in orbit are finally heading back to Earth." Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore embarked on what was supposed to be an eight-day trip to the International Space Station (ISS), but that brief space experience - nearly 300 days ago - transformed into existence circling our planet.
Marooned NASA astronauts detach from ISS (NASA/International Space Station)
The Boeing Starliner they traveled on encountered numerous issues - including five helium leaks, five steering thrusters failing, and a propellant valve not closing fully. They launched into space on June 5, 2024, meaning they haven't touched solid ground for 285 days - which will become 286 days when they finally return.
A recent update from the space agency stated: "At 1:05 a.m. EDT Tuesday, NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, and Butch Wilmore, along with Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov detached from the space-facing port of International Space Station's Harmony module aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft."
An earlier communication explained they will splash down to Earth off Florida's coast.
Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore participated in numerous Q&As during their orbital stay (NASA)
"The spacecraft will detach from the orbiting laboratory about 1:05 a.m. on Tuesday, aiming for a targeted splashdown at 5:57 p.m. off the coast of Florida," NASA announced.
The ISS circles Earth 16 times during each 24-hour period. They left Earth on June 5 and entered their return vessel shortly after 11pm on March 17 - totaling 285 days. This means they've orbited our planet approximately 4,560 times.
Additionally, they would witness 16 sunrises and 16 sunsets within 24 hours - so they've experienced roughly 4,560 sunrises and an equal number of sunsets.
Father-of-two Wilmore will soon reunite with his children, while Williams looks forward to seeing her family. Both astronauts kept occupied while floating aboard the ISS, completing assigned tasks during their stay, with spacewalks also being frequent - but they'll certainly be glad to return to Earth when they exit the SpaceX capsule.
Wilmore and Williams captured before their Earth departure in June last year - they'll receive numerous flowers upon their return (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
The astronaut's 16-year-old daughter, Daryn Wilmore, has attributed 'negligence' and 'significant political factors' as reasons her father remains in space. Speaking in a social media post last month, Daryn explained: "He's missed many important events. The issue isn't always that he's up there; it's more about why he's still there.
"Various political elements exist, along with many things I can't discuss because I lack complete information. Problems have occurred, negligence has happened. The situation has been one obstacle after another."
Though Daryn hasn't seen her father for nearly nine months, she communicates with her astronaut dad every day and eagerly anticipates their in-person reunion, assuming everything proceeds as planned.
