NASA’s next International Space Station crew launched on Friday, paving the way for Starliner astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita Williams to return home next week. The new crew, including commander Anne McClain, pilot Nichole Ayers, Japanese astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Russian cosmonaut Kirill Peskov, lifted off from Kennedy Space Center at 7:03 p.m. EDT. After a successful launch and stage separation, the Crew Dragon capsule embarked on its journey, despite an unusual display of insulation from the Falcon 9’s second stage.
The Crew Dragon is set to autonomously rendezvous with the station on Saturday night, docking at 11:30 p.m. to join Crew 9 members, including Wilmore and Williams. The astronauts had initially planned for a short stay, but due to technical delays with the Boeing Starliner, they’ve been extended in space. Their mission was originally expected to last just over a week, but they’ve now been in space for about 290 days.
Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s commercial crew program, praised the Starliner astronauts, saying they had done an excellent job, and expressed excitement about their return. Wilmore and Williams, who launched aboard Starliner for its first piloted test flight in June 2024, experienced several issues with the spacecraft, leading to an extended mission aboard the ISS. Despite political commentary suggesting otherwise, both astronauts emphasized they never felt stranded or abandoned and remained committed to their mission.
Their return is set for next week, when they will join Hague and Gorbunov for the trip home, marking the end of an extended space odyssey.
