GUWAHATI: Elon Musk has announced that SpaceX will assist in the return of NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore, who have been stranded aboard the International Space Station (ISS) since their launch in June 2024. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Musk revealed that former US President Donald Trump had urged him to bring the astronauts back "as soon as possible."
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In his post, Musk criticised the Biden administration, stating, "The @POTUS has asked @SpaceX to bring home the 2 astronauts stranded on the @Space_Station as soon as possible. We will do so. Terrible that the Biden administration left them there so long."
Trump also addressed the situation on his platform, Truth Social, where he wrote that he had personally asked Musk and SpaceX to rescue the astronauts, who he claimed were "virtually abandoned in space." Expressing confidence in Musk’s efforts, Trump added, "Elon will soon be on his way. Hopefully, all will be safe." Musk later shared Trump's post along with a saluting face emoji.
Williams and Wilmore initially travelled to the ISS aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, with plans to return upon completing their mission. However, persistent technical issues and delays with Starliner have left them in space far longer than expected. Now, with SpaceX stepping in, efforts are underway to ensure their safe return to Earth.