NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore, who have been stranded on the International Space Station (ISS) for nearly ten months, may finally return to Earth on March 16, according to NASA.
The duo embarked on their mission aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft on 5 June 2024, initially scheduled for an eight-day stay. However, technical malfunctions delayed their return. Upon approaching the ISS, the Starliner encountered issues, including the shutdown of five thrusters—critical for manoeuvring—and a depletion of its helium supply. The spacecraft was then forced to rely on alternative fuel sources, rendering it unsafe for their return journey.
NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov were launched on the SpaceX Crew-9 mission with two seats reserved for Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore aboard their Dragon spacecraft. They were originally scheduled to return in February, but now all four will return together on March 16.
“The astronauts will return to Earth on March 16”, NASA officials said on Friday, as per Space.com. “When we looked at the situation at the time, we had a Crew-9 launch in front of us. It made sense to take the opportunity to bring Crew-9 up with just two seats and have Butch and Suni fill in, and do the rest of the long-duration mission,” ISS program manager Dana Weigel explained during a press briefing.
NASA’s Crew-9 astronauts, including Williams and Wilmore, previously addressed a press conference from space on 4 March 2025, providing updates on their situation.
Trump’s ‘Wild Hair Woman’ Comment On Sunita Williams, Slams Biden For Return Delay
Former US President Donald Trump criticised his successor, Joe Biden, for the prolonged delay, stating, “Biden left them up there.” He claimed that he personally asked SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to intervene. “I have asked Elon, I said, ‘Do me a favour. Can you get them out?’ He said, ‘Yes,’” Trump told reporters at the Oval Office, adding, “He is preparing to go up, I think in two weeks.”
“They’ve been left up there. I hope they like each other, but they’ve been… maybe they’ll love each other, I don’t know, but they’ve been left up there. Think of it. There’s a danger up there too. It can have some failures up there. That would be very bad. You got to get them out,” he remarked.
Trump also made a light-hearted comment about Williams’ appearance in zero gravity. “And I see the woman with the wild hair, good, solid head of hair she’s got. There’s no kidding, there’s no games with her hair,” he remarked.
When asked about his message to the astronauts, Trump assured them, “We love you, and we’re coming up to get you. And you shouldn’t have been up there so long.”
Musk also weighed in on the situation, alleging that the delay in their return was due to the Biden administration. He posted on X (formerly Twitter), “The astronauts were only supposed to be up there for 8 days and now have been there for 8 months. SpaceX could have sent up another Dragon and brought them home 6 months ago, but the Biden White House (not NASA) refused to allow it. President Trump asked to bring them back as soon as possible and we are doing so.”
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Williams, 59, has already set milestones in space exploration. In January this year, she logged a record-breaking 62 hours and 6 minutes of total spacewalking time for a woman. In 2012, during an earlier ISS mission, she became the first person to complete a triathlon in space, simulating swimming with a weight-lifting machine and running on a treadmill while strapped in to prevent floating.
As NASA prepares for the astronauts’ long-awaited return, the Starliner mission remains under scrutiny, raising questions about the reliability of Boeing’s spacecraft for future operations.
