Astronaut Sunita Williams and her colleague, astronaut Butch Wilmore, who travelled to the International Space Station (ISS) in June, will have to stay longer in space due to technical issues with Boeing’s Starliner and delays in the next crew launch.
The astronauts who went on June 5, 2024, were originally set to return in February 2025, but Nasa announced on Tuesday that they will remain aboard until at least late March.
The duo went to the ISS on Boeing’s Starliner for what was meant to be an 8-day mission. But problems with the Starliner, like helium leaks and weak thrusters, forced Nasa to send it back to Earth empty in September. The astronauts stayed on the station, continuing their work while Nasa adjusted its plans.
The delay is due to preparations for a new SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule, with Nasa and SpaceX choosing to prioritise safety over speed. “Fabrication, assembly, testing, and final integration of a new spacecraft is a painstaking endeavour that requires great attention to detail,” Steve Stich, head of Nasa’s Commercial Crew Program, was quoted as saying to CBS News.
The Crew-9 mission, which included Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, was launched to the ISS on September 30 to replace Williams and Wilmore. However, the efforts to bring the duo back failed due to the hazards of Hurricane Helene, along with other technical issues.
Missions on the ISS usually last six months, but Wilmore and Williams will spend about ten months in space due to the delay.
The next crew, Crew-10, is expected to launch in late March on the new SpaceX capsule. It will include Nasa astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, Russian cosmonaut Kirill Peskov, and Japanese astronaut Takuya Onishi. Once they arrive, there will be a “handover period,” where Wilmore, Williams, and their teammates, Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov, are set to brief the new crew on station operations.