GUWAHATI: NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore have successfully undocked from the International Space Station (ISS) and are on their way back to Earth after being stranded in space for over nine months. The Dragon spacecraft physically separated from the ISS earlier today, with the hatch closing at 10:35 AM IST on Tuesday, March 18. Williams and Wilmore are expected to splash down off the coast of Florida at 3:27 AM on Wednesday. NASA adjusted the return schedule to ensure a smooth handover of duties and to accommodate potential weather challenges later in the week.
ALSO READ: Assam HSLC Social Studies Students To Get Extra Marks
NASA has already begun its live broadcast of SpaceX Crew-9’s return, covering key moments of the journey, starting with the closing of the spacecraft hatch.
The mission to bring the astronauts back was launched on Friday, when a Falcon 9 rocket carrying a Dragon spacecraft on the Crew-10 mission lifted off at 7:03 am ET. The launch followed calls from former US President Donald Trump for a faster rescue operation, as he criticised his successor, Joe Biden, for allegedly neglecting the astronauts’ situation.
Williams and Wilmore arrived at the ISS in June last year aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. Their stay was initially planned to last only a week, but technical issues forced an extended mission. The Starliner returned to Earth unmanned in September after NASA and Boeing detected helium leaks and reaction control thruster malfunctions as the spacecraft approached the ISS on June 6.
