NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have safely returned to Earth following an unplanned nine-month stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Their journey concluded with a successful splashdown off the coast of Florida at 5:57 p.m. ET on Tuesday.
Wilmore and Williams originally launched aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft in June 2024 for what was intended to be an eight-day test flight. However, propulsion system malfunctions in the Starliner forced a prolonged stay, integrating the astronauts into the station’s regular crew rotation schedule.
To facilitate their return, NASA coordinated with SpaceX to include them in the Crew-9 mission, which launched in September 2024. The mission was adjusted to accommodate Wilmore and Williams, ensuring their safe passage back to Earth.
The Crew-9 spacecraft undocked from the ISS at 1:05 a.m. ET on Tuesday, beginning a 17-hour journey home. During re-entry, the capsule endured intense atmospheric friction, slowing from 17,000 mph to just 17 mph before making a controlled splashdown.
Upon landing, mission commander Nick Hague radioed mission control, saying, “I see a capsule full of grins, ear to ear,” according to Reuters. Recovery teams swiftly retrieved the spacecraft, and the astronauts were transported to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston for routine medical evaluations before reuniting with their families.
Butch Wilmore reacts after he and Suni Williams and two other astronauts splashed down in a Crew Dragon space capsule following their return to earth from the International Space Station off the coast of Florida, U.S. March 18, 2025 in a still image from video. NASA TV/Handout via REUTERS.
NASA astronaut Suni Williams is helped out of a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN after she, NASA astronaut Nick Hague, and Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov landed in the water off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. NASA/Keegan Barber/ Handout via REUTERS
Both Wilmore and Williams are veteran astronauts with distinguished careers. Wilmore, a retired U.S. Navy test pilot, previously piloted the Space Shuttle Atlantis on the STS-129 mission in 2009 and served as ISS commander during Expeditions 41 and 42.
Williams, also a retired U.S. Navy test pilot, holds the record for the longest spaceflight by a woman and has completed seven spacewalks, accumulating over 608 days in space.
As NASA continues refining its Commercial Crew Program, the experiences of Wilmore and Williams will provide critical insights for future missions, ensuring greater reliability and safety in human spaceflight.