18 hours ago
Last Updated:March 19, 2025, 07:55 IST
Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore returned this morning, splashing down off the Florida coast in a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft.
SpaceX head Elon Musk
Astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore are back on Earth after an extended stay aboard the Space Station. Their initial eight-day mission, launched on June 5 of last year aboard a Boeing Starliner, unexpectedly stretched into a nine-month sojourn.
The astronauts returned this morning, splashing down off the Florida coast in a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft. They were joined on the 17-hour journey home by NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov.
SpaceX chief Elon Musk reacted to the mission’s success in a post on X. He wrote, “Congratulations to the @SpaceX and @NASA teams for another safe astronaut return!"
He added, “Thank you to @POTUS for prioritizing this mission."
Sunita Williams And Butch Wilmore Thanks Elon Musk And Donald Trump
Prior to their return, Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore expressed their gratitude to Elon Musk and US President Donald Trump. In a video message shared on social media by Elon Musk, Sunita Williams jokingly warned, “We are coming back before long, so don’t make those plans without me."
Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore were stranded in space since June last year, when they launched to the ISS as test pilots for Boeing’s new Starliner capsule. Originally expecting to be gone for a week, the mission encountered several technical problems, leading to delays in their return.
Donald Trump earlier said, “We love you and we’re coming up to get you, and you shouldn’t have been up there so long. The most incompetent president in our history has allowed that to happen to you… I’ve authorized Elon Musk to go and get them and he’s prepared to do so."
Location :Washington D.C., United States of America (USA)
First Published:March 19, 2025, 06:57 IST
News world 'Welcome Back': Elon Musk Shares Stunning Splashdown Video As Sunita Williams Returns To Earth
