NASA has announced plans to bring two American astronauts, Sunita Williams and Barry ‘Butch’ Wilmore, back to Earth in February 2025 after they were stranded on the International Space Station (ISS) due to technical issues with their Boeing Starliner spacecraft.
The astronauts have been stuck in space since June 2024 after the Starliner, which was initially scheduled for an eight-day mission, experienced complications. NASA revealed on Saturday that it is preparing to return the astronauts using SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft.
According to NASA, the Dragon spacecraft, typically configured for four crew members, will launch with two crew members and reserve space for Williams and Wilmore to join the return mission in February. The space agency is working on several pre-launch preparations, including reconfiguring seats on the Crew-9 Dragon and adjusting the cargo manifest to accommodate additional items and spacesuits for the returning astronauts.
The launch is set to take place at Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, providing greater operational flexibility for the mission.
NASA also stated that the malfunctioning Starliner spacecraft would be returned to Earth uncrewed, with a controlled autonomous re-entry and landing expected in early September.
