NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore probably got the warmest welcome upon their return to Earth after 286 days in space. As soon as the SpaceX Dragon capsule started drifting in the waves of the Gulf of Mexico, a pod of curious dolphins encircled the duo, with their sleek bodies cutting through the water insynchronised arcs.
As rescue divers secured the capsule for hoisting onto the recovery ship, the dolphins lingered, circling the site as though welcoming the space travelers. Inside the capsule, Williams and Wilmore waited for the hatch to open.
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A support team member works on the SpaceX capsule shortly after it landed as a dolphin swims past in the water off the coast of Tallahassee. PTI.
Their troubles had started with Boeing’s Starliner crew capsule, which was supposed to carry them home in June 2024. So many problems cropped up on the way to the space station that NASA eventually sent Starliner back empty and transferred the test pilots to SpaceX, pushing their homecoming into February. Then SpaceX capsule issues added another month's delay.
Later, the astronauts were transferred to SpaceX’s Dragon capsule instead, but that too encountered delays—first by a month, then another, as mission teams worked through safety concerns.
Dolphins swim past the Crew Dragon capsule. REUTERS.
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Finally, their relief crew arrived, clearing the way for their departure. NASA had chosen to bring them back slightly ahead of schedule, wary of an approaching weather system that could complicate a later landing.
They had traveled 121 million miles, orbiting Earth 4,576 times. And now, as the capsule bobbed in the waves, the journey was over.
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NASA astronauts Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore and Nick Hague, and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov inside a SpaceX capsule after it splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico.PTI.
“On behalf of SpaceX, welcome home,” radioed SpaceX Mission Control from California.
“What a ride,” responded Nick Hague, the capsule’s commander. “I see a capsule full of grins ear to ear.”
When the recovery team opened the hatch, Williams was next-to-last to emerge, followed by Wilmore, who flashed two gloved thumbs-up.
They were helped onto reclining stretchers..standard procedure after long-duration spaceflight. Cameras clicked, capturing the moment they were back on solid ground.
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NASA astronaut Sunita Williams is being helped out of a SpaceX capsule after it splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico. PTI.
For Williams, this landing was different. Her space career had already spanned multiple missions, including a record-breaking stay aboard the space station. But this time, the journey was a lesson in patience.
Back on land, her family in the US and India waited for her return.
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NASA astronaut Sunita Williams' cousin Dinesh Rawal speaks with the media upon her safe return to earth from the International Space Station (ISS), in Ahmedabad.PTI.
“That moment was surreal,” said her sister-in-law, Falguni Pandya, speaking to NDTV. “We don’t have exact dates, but she’s definitely going to come to India soon. I hope this year.”
Williams' connection to India runs deep. Her father, Deepak Pandya, was from Gujarat, and she had always spoken of her fondness for the country. “She feels the love from India and Indians, and I know she will come back. It’s just a matter of timing, schedule, and logistics,” Pandya said.
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People watch live telecast on television during the splashdown of SpaceX safe return with U.S. astronaut Sunita Williams inside a Hindu Temple at her native village of Jhulasan.REUTERS.
Pandya recalled sending Kaju Katli, a popular Indian sweet, to Williams for her birthday in space last September. And in one of their recent conversations, the astronaut had asked for pictures from the Maha Kumbh in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj, eager to stay connected to the world she had left behind, per reports.
The weightlessness of space was gone now.