Inside the Historic Mission of Astronauts Who Returned to Earth Last Week
By: Lauren Ramsey – Wise News Network
Cape Canaveral, FL. (WNN)- The NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore, Suni Williams, Nick Hague, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov successfully completed a long mission on the International Space Station (ISS) on March 18, 2025.
Mission Overview
NASA launched astronauts Wilmore and Williams into space on June 5, 2024, using the Boeing-operated CST-100 Starliner for its inaugural Crew Flight Test. They were scheduled to return to Earth eight days later on June 14, 2024.
The Starliner accomplished a successful docking to the ISS on June 6, 2024. The engineering team discovered more helium leak problems and propulsion system issues while astronauts were present at the International Space Station.
NASA concluded that transporting the crew members back to Earth using the Starliner created safety issues. The spacecraft eventually returned to Earth without any crew members aboard on September 7, 2024.
What Happened
Wilmore and Williams became part of the Expedition 71/72 crew in the International Space Station along with Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov after their arrival through SpaceX’s Crew-9 mission in September 2024.
The four crewmembers conducted months-long teamwork which involved research studies, station maintenance tasks, and exterior spaceflight duties.
Scientific Contributions
The team worked together on 150 separate experiments during this extended time which covered biomedical studies alongside materials science research alongside Earth observation research.
The astronauts upgraded the space station systems through spacewalks, conducted inspections, and connected with global students via live demonstrations. The prolonged mission was challenging, requiring physical stamina and teamwork among the international crew in unpredictable conditions.
During her mission, Williams became the female astronaut to handle the longest duration of spacewalks with a total time of 62 hours 6 minutes while Hague and Gorbunov provided crucial maintenance service and technology demonstrations on the station.
The research team gained samples from various parts of the ISS external surface with NASA and Roscosmos scientists participating in the study of space-friendly microorganisms.
Return to Earth
The Crew Dragon capsule from SpaceX enabled a safe return for the team crew members. The spacecraft started its voyage away from the ISS at 1:05 a.m. EDT on March 18 while transporting Wilmore and his three crewmates together with Gorbunov and Hague and Williams back to Earth.
The spacecraft descended into the Gulf of Mexico near Tallahassee Florida and touched down at 5:57 p.m. EDT.
The decision to keep Wilmore and Williams aboard the space station for an additional period was made by NASA solely for safety and logistical reasons.
Return to Earth and Political Speculation
The extended stay sparked some speculation that geopolitical tensions particularly between the United States and Russia, may have also influenced NASA’s careful scheduling and decision-making.
NASA officials confirmed through repeated statements that the mission operations would always put crew safety first while setting aside all political speculation.
NASA Acting Administrator Janet Petro issued a formal declaration which acknowledged that both the flight team stationed in space alongside the crew members as well as ground-based teams supported changing their schedule according to instructions from the Trump Administration.
Legacy of the Mission
This mission ultimately showed how unpredictable human space exploration can be. During their 286 days in space, the four crew members traveled 121 million miles while orbiting Earth 4576 times. The research expanded human scientific understanding while motivating people to venture into space exploration.
Read more about the mission here: NASA’s official press release.
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