One day after blasting off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the SpaceX Crew-10 capsule arrived at the International Space Station (ISS) on March 16, delivering replacements to the two U.S. astronauts who had been originally scheduled to return nine months ago.
The four new astronauts represent the United States, Japan, and Russia, and will spend the ensuing days acclimating to the space station as Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams prepare for their long-awaited return to Earth next week.
During that time, Wilmore and Williams will strap into the SpaceX Crew-9 capsule, one that embarked on its voyage to the ISS last year, to finally cap their long and arduous journey to space, which began in June 2024 and was only scheduled to last a week.
The two launched on Boeing Starliner’s first manned test flight to space, hitting the ninth month in orbit just weeks ago. Starliner encountered problems almost immediately, even before Wilmore and Williams launched to the ISS, including multiple helium leaks the eventually forced NASA to scrub a return flight with the two inside the capsule.
Instead, NASA sent Starliner back home empty, leaving the two astronauts inside the ISS indefinitely while waiting for a SpaceX capsule to bring them home.
Wilmore welcomed the new arrivals on Sunday, swinging open the space station’s hatch while ringing the ship’s bell as each astronaut floated in. They were greeted with handshakes and hugs.
“It was a wonderful day. Great to see our friends arrive,” Williams told Mission Control.
The SpaceX Crew-9 capsule that will take Wilmore and Williams back to Earth arrived in late September 2024 with two fewer crew members, so there would be two empty seats available for the trip back. However, battery issues on the new capsule caused further delays, requiring repairs and pushing their return back to mid-March.
The SpaceX Crew-9 capsule will undock from the ISS no earlier than March 19 if weather permits, before splashing down off the coast of Florida.
Eleven astronauts will remain onboard the ISS until that time.
“First principle in space flight, you always have a way to come home, and Butch and Suni have had a way to come home,” Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program at Kennedy Space Center, told members of the press during a Crew-10 post-launch press conference.
Ultimately, NASA chose the third option and sent the Crew-9 capsule last year with empty seats and additional space suits for Wilmore and Williams. The two continued their work until Crew-10 arrived on Sunday to relieve the astronauts of their duties.
“For me, it’s a normal handover,” Stich said of the role swap between Crew-9 and Crew-10. “Uniquely, this time, we launched Butch and Suni with Starliner. We’re bringing them home on a Dragon. That’s the only difference to me.”
