NASA Astronauts Sunita and Butch Set To Return Earth

Sunita (Suni) Williams and Barry Wilmore initially embarked on a 10-day mission aboard the Boeing Starliner on June 5, 2024, but the spacecraft experienced thruster malfunctions during its approach and docking maneuvers. 

This resulted in an extensive investigation by NASA and Boeing back on the ground, with the space agency finally declaring the Starliner too risky to carry astronauts back home.

 spacecraft returned to Earth without its crew in September, leaving the two astronauts without a ride home. 

Later, NASA decided to bring both its astronauts back to Earth with the help of billionaire Elon Musk's SpaceX. Williams and Wilmore were added to the downward leg of SpaceX's Crew-9 mission, which was launched with only two members -- NASA's astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov --  in September, making it possible to accommodate the duo stranded in space.

Crew-9's return was initially scheduled for February after it completed its six-month stay at ISS, but it was postponed due to logistical adjustments. Finally, NASA cleared the launch of Crew 10 on Friday. 

The mission will be launched on March 12 from Kennedy Space Center, carrying astronauts Anne McClain, Nichole Ayers, Takuya Onishi, and Kirill Peskov. Due to construction delays, the crew is flying on the Endurance capsule instead of the originally planned new Crew Dragon spacecraft.