Here's why NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore are stuck, but not stranded, at the International Space Station after launching into space in June.
The two NASA astronauts who have been stuck on the space station since their Boeing spacecraft ran into problems will have to remain there even longer.
The next crew rotation mission to the International Space Station (ISS), SpaceX's Crew-10, has been delayed to no earlier than late March 2025, NASA announced on Tuesday (Dec. 17).
NASA's next crew of four was originally set to launch in February, with Wilmore and Williams returning home by the end of the month alongside two other astronauts. However, SpaceX requires additional time to ready the new capsule for flight, pushing the launch to late March at the earliest.
Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, the Boeing Starliner astronauts who remained in space following the spacecraft's return to Earth, will not depart the International Space Station until the spring following a schedule change from NASA.
The Starliner astronauts have had their homecoming delayed yet again after NASA postponed the launch of the mission whose crew would replace them.
The crew launched to the ISS in June for a week-long mission but will end up spending an unplanned nine months in space.
NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have been stuck in space for months longer than expected, and will not return to Earth until at least March 2025 at the earliest, NASA indicated.
The two NASA astronauts stuck in space after Boeing’s Starliner experienced issues earlier this year have been hit with a new delay. Astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore were part of Boeing’s long-delayed mission in early June.
Space missions to the moon, Mars and beyond often get the most attention, but NASA's Near Space Network does a lot of heavy lifting for humankind's reach for the stars.
The images, which shows Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams and other NASA astronauts wearing Santa Claus hats, was posted earlier this week to celebrate the holidays.