Nasa announced on Tuesday that astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams, who have been stranded aboard the International Space Station (ISS), could return to Earth sooner than expected.
The agency confirmed that SpaceX will adjust its capsule schedule to facilitate their return in mid-March, rather than the previously anticipated timeline of late March or April.
“Human spaceflight is full of unexpected challenges,” stated Nasa’s commercial crew programme manager Steve Stich, according to the Associated Press.
Nasa’s revised plan to bring back astronauts Wilmore and Williams follows its commitment to work “expeditiously” on their return. This announcement came soon after US President Donald Trump and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk pledged to accelerate efforts to bring the astronauts home.
The two astronauts were initially scheduled to return in June aboard Boeing’s Starliner capsule after a brief demonstration mission. However, technical issues with the spacecraft led to repeated delays, extending their stay at the International Space Station (ISS) to over nine monthsāfar beyond the originally planned weeklong mission.
The complications with the capsule’s station approach led Nasa to return it empty and transfer the astronauts to SpaceX. Additional delays occurred when their replacement launch was postponed due to necessary preparations for a new capsule, extending Wilmore and Williams’ mission further.
Nasa has now decided to use an older capsule for its next crew launch, targeted for March 12, instead of waiting for the new capsule’s completion. This older vessel was previously allocated to a private crew mission.
The private mission, organised by Houston-based Axiom Space and including astronauts from Poland, Hungary and India, has been rescheduled for a later date, potentially still within spring.
Nasa typically arranges for new crew arrival before departing crew departure. The current station residents include Wilmore, Williams and two others who arrived in September. The incoming crew comprises two Nasa astronauts, one Japanese astronaut and one Russian astronaut.
