Countdown begins for Sunita Williams’ return to Earth, SpaceX Crew Dragon is being prepared

NASA astronaut Sunita Williams and her partner Butch Wilmore are soon going to return to Earth from the International Space Station (ISS). For this, the Crew Dragon spacecraft of Elon Musk’s company SpaceX will be dispatched soon. Both astronauts were originally sent to the International Space Station in June 2023 on Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, but later due to technical problems, their return mission had to be postponed. Since then, both astronauts have been stranded on the International Space Station.

Why is Sunita Williams stuck on the ISS

The Starliner spacecraft suffered a thruster malfunction and a helium leak, making the crew’s return unsafe. NASA opted to keep Williams and Wilmore on the ISS while waiting for a safer option. After this, the SpaceX Crew-9 mission has been approved to launch the mission again for the two astronauts to return to Earth later.

SpaceX Dragon: New journey home

Williams and Wilmore will now return aboard the SpaceX Dragon capsule, which is part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. The SpaceX Crew-9 mission, which was initially planned to include astronauts Zena Cardman and Stephanie Wilson, will now also accommodate Imsen Williams and Wilmore. NASA has made space for two extras to join the Crew-9 return flight along with NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov. The Dragon capsule is planned to dock with the ISS in early 2025 to bring back the Crew-9 team.

How is life on the ISS

According to NASA, Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore are safe on the International Space Station. The space station, the size of a five-bedroom house, provides ample space and resources for its crew. Williams is currently serving as the space station commander, while Wilmore is serving as the flight engineer. Both are currently contributing to ongoing research and maintenance operations.

Sunita Williams continues to work on the ISS

Recently, the ISS crew led by Williams responded quickly to an incident involving a toxic odor detected on the Progress MS-29 cargo spacecraft. After the spacecraft docked with the ISS’s Poisk module, astronauts reported the problem, prompting both NASA and Roscosmos to activate air-scrubbing systems. While the origin of the odor is being investigated, the situation was resolved effectively without any further complications.