Stranded Astronauts Head Home After Nine-Month ISS Stay

After an unexpected nine-month stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS), two NASA astronauts are finally on their way home. Their SpaceX Dragon capsule successfully undocked from the orbital station at 0505 GMT Tuesday, marking the end of a prolonged mission that captured global attention.

NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams were joined by American Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov on their journey back to Earth. The crew, now settling in for a 17-hour return trip, have been given permission to change from their space suits into more comfortable clothing.

If all goes as planned, the capsule will deploy parachutes for an ocean splashdown off the coast of Florida at 2157 GMT Tuesday, where a recovery team will retrieve the astronauts.

Wilmore and Williams initially arrived at the ISS in June 2023 aboard Boeing’s Starliner for what was meant to be a short test flight. However, propulsion issues with the Starliner forced NASA to deem it unfit for their return, sending the spacecraft back to Earth without its crew.

With no immediate alternative, Wilmore and Williams were reassigned to NASA-SpaceX Crew-9, a mission that saw a reduced team of two astronauts fly to the ISS last September to accommodate the stranded pair.

Their long-awaited departure was made possible after the Crew-10 relief team docked at the ISS on Sunday. Their arrival was met with smiles and hugs as they floated through the hatch, paving the way for Wilmore, Williams, Hague, and Gorbunov to leave.

“Colleagues and dear friends who remain on the station… we’ll be waiting for you. Crew-9 is going home,” Hague said before the capsule hatch was closed.

While Wilmore and Williams’ extended stay exceeded the standard six-month ISS rotation, it ranks sixth among the longest U.S. space missions. Frank Rubio holds the NASA record at 371 days, while Russian cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov spent a record-breaking 437 consecutive days aboard the Mir station.

Despite the prolonged mission, health experts say the astronauts are well-prepared for the physical challenges of extended space travel, including muscle and bone loss, fluid shifts, and readjusting to gravity.

“Folks like Suni Williams are actually known for their interest in exercise, and so I believe she exercises beyond what is even her normal prescription,” said Rihana Bokhari, a space medicine specialist at Baylor College.

However, the unexpected nature of their extended stay—away from their families and initially without adequate supplies—has drawn public attention.

“If you found out you went to work today and were going to be stuck in your office for the next nine months, you might have a panic attack,” said Joseph Keebler, a psychologist at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. “These individuals have shown unbelievable resilience.”

The extended mission also became a political flashpoint, with former U.S. President Donald Trump and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk alleging that the Biden administration neglected the astronauts.

“They shamefully forgot about the astronauts because they considered it to be a very embarrassing event for them,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday, without offering evidence.

NASA officials dismissed these claims, stating that the plan for the astronauts’ return remained unchanged since their Crew-9 reassignment.

Trump also made controversial remarks about astronaut Suni Williams, referring to her as “the woman with the wild hair” and speculating about the crew’s personal dynamics.

“They’ve been left up there—I hope they like each other, maybe they love each other, I don’t know,” he said during a recent press conference, drawing criticism from the space community.

With the crew finally on their way home, all eyes are now on their safe return and the next steps for Boeing’s troubled Starliner program.