NASA astronauts [Sunita Williams](https://www.financialexpress.com/life/science-countdown-begins-for-sunita-williams-and-butch-wilmores-return-to-earth-nasa-confirms-date-shares-splashdown-time-3778993/) and Butch Wilmore are finally set to return to Earth after an unexpectedly long 287-day stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Their mission, originally planned for just eight days, was extended due to technical issues with Boeing’s Starliner, forcing the duo to remain in orbit for over nine months. Now, NASA has cleared their return, and they are scheduled to depart no earlier than March 19 aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft.
As GS-15 federal employees, both Williams and Wilmore earn an annual salary ranging from $125,133 to $162,672 (approximately Rs 1.08 crore to Rs 1.41 crore). With their mission extended to nine months, their earnings will be prorated to between $93,850 and $122,004 (around Rs 81 lakh to Rs 1.05 crore).
However, despite spending nearly a year in space, NASA does not provide astronauts with overtime pay. Instead, they receive a modest daily stipend for incidentals—just $4 per day (approximately Rs 347), as revealed by retired astronaut Cady Coleman.
With Williams and Wilmore spending 287 days instead of the planned eight, their total incidental stipend adds up to just $1,148 (around Rs 1 lakh). This brings their total earnings for the mission—including base salary and stipend—to a range of $94,998 to $123,152 (approximately Rs 82 lakh to Rs 1.06 crore).
While Williams and Wilmore prepare to return, their replacements have already arrived at the ISS. The newly launched SpaceX Crew-10 mission has taken over operations, bringing NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, Japanese astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Russian cosmonaut Kirill Peskov to the space station.
After months of delays and an unexpectedly long stay, Williams and Wilmore are finally set to make their long-awaited journey back to Earth, marking the end of one of NASA’s most prolonged crewed missions in recent history.