After the US President Donald Trump announced the NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore will be brought back from space by Elon Musk’s Space X, Excitement and joy have soured. Space stuck astronauts are still counting their days in space due to a faulty spacecraft.
They had launched aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft on June 5. They reached the International Space Station (ISS) on June 6. On their way to the ISS, the Starliner was detected with faults in the thrusters and helium leaks.
As this caused panic in NASA, they thought it to risky to bring the stuck astronuts on the starliner, NASA decided to bring back the Boing spacecraft empty. NASA said that the two Starliner astronuts would now return on a SpaceX-Dragon spacecraft in February 2025. It was then decided to bring them home on the same Dragon spacecraft which was used to launch Crew 9 mission members Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbuno to the ISS.
“I have just asked Elon Musk and @SpaceX to “go get” the 2 brave astronauts who have been virtually abandoned in space by the Biden Administration. They have been waiting for many months on @Space Station. Elon will soon be on his way. Hopefully, all will be safe. Good luck Elon!!!,” Donald Trump posted on Truth Social.
How Are Sunita Williams And Barry Wilmore Doing In Space?
The astronuts were in a 10-day mission on June last year, After their craft had issues, they are now still at the space stranded. The extended stay of Williams and Wilmore have sparked concerns about their health and experts have also questioned the same. However, NASA has maintained that the two astronauts are safe, healthy and comfortable. According to them, Sunita Williams is also involved in several ongoing experiments and research projects while being on the International Space Station.
Williams have said “This is my happy place. I love being up here in space. It’s fun…it adds a little different perspective.” She said it’s very peaceful in space a lot of times. “It’s really difficult for me to imagine people on Earth not getting along…it’s the one planet we have and we should all really be happy that we are there together…,” she added.
In August last year, Nasa announced that it had contracted Elon Musk’s firm to return Williams and Wilmore to Earth no later than February 2025 on a SpaceX Crew Dragon flight.
According to NASA, Sunita Williams has so far spend over 500 days in space. She had earlier spent a cumulative total of 322 days in space. With the latest mission Williams has complete over 500 days in space.
Why Nasa Can’t Send A New Spacecraft?
Last December, NASA has said that their return will won’t occur until last March or possibly April. “Fabrication, assembly, testing, and final integration of a new spacecraft is a painstaking endeavor that requires great attention to detail,” said Steve Stich, manager, Nasa’s Commercial Crew Programme. “We appreciate the hard work by the SpaceX team to expand the Dragon fleet in support of our missions and the flexibility of the station programme and expedition crews as we work together to complete the new capsule’s readiness for flight.”
To make room for the astronauts, NASA updated its initial Crew-9 plans, cutting down the number of astronauts scheduled to fly out on the SpaceX Dragon mission this September. But after Elon Musk’s tweet in response to Trump’s request to bring them back, multiple reports suggests that Crew Dragon freedom may depart the ISS sooner than expected, bringing Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore back to Earth earlier than planned March 2025 timeline.
Features Of Elon Musk’s SpaceX’s Crew Dragon
Crew Dragon of Elon Musk’s SpaceX has built the Crew Dragon primarily to carry astronauts to the International Space Station. NASA developed it as part of its effort to shift space station flights to American companies, reducing dependence on Russian launches after years of reliance.
Musk has planned, that the Crew Dragon was developed to hand over space flights to American companies after space agency retired its space shuttle in 2011. It’s first mission to the ISS took place in 2020. The spacecraft transported four American and Japanese astronauts to the destination.
The Vehicle was evolved from an earlier spacecraft, called Dragon1, it is a seven-seater with two parts which is with a reusable space capsule and an expandable trunk module. Dragon 1 has launched 20 times on missions to deliver cargo to the ISS