NASA has announced that astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore may return to Earth earlier than initially planned, following adjustments to their flight schedule.
The space agency revealed on Tuesday that SpaceX will switch capsules for upcoming astronaut missions, enabling the two astronauts to come home in mid-March instead of the previously scheduled return in late March or April.
This change will shorten their extended stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS), which reached the eight-month mark last week.
The astronauts were originally set to return in June aboard Boeing’s Starliner capsule, after what was supposed to be a brief weeklong flight demonstration.
However, delays and issues with the capsule’s ability to dock with the space station led NASA to bring it back empty and reassign Williams and Wilmore to SpaceX for their return journey.
Further delays to the launch of their replacements, who were set to fly in a new SpaceX capsule, stretched out Williams and Wilmore’s mission.
Given additional work required for the new spacecraft, NASA has now decided to send the next crew aboard an older capsule that is ready for flight.
This capsule, previously assigned to a private crew mission with astronauts from Poland, Hungary, and India, will now carry NASA’s astronauts instead, with the launch scheduled for March 12. As a result, the private crew’s flight will be delayed but is expected to launch later this spring.
NASA typically prefers to send up a new crew before bringing the current team back.
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This next crew, which will replace Williams, Wilmore, and two other astronauts, includes two NASA astronauts, as well as one astronaut from Japan and one from Russia.
This latest development comes just two weeks after NASA announced that it was prioritizing the swift return of Williams and Wilmore.
The decision follows a commitment from President Donald Trump and SpaceX’s Elon Musk to expedite their return to Earth.
NASA’s Commercial Crew Program manager, Steve Stich, acknowledged the unexpected challenges of human spaceflight but emphasised the agency’s dedication to overcoming obstacles in bringing the astronauts home safely.
