NASA astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita “Suni” Williams returned to Earth on March 18 after unexpectedly being stuck in space. What was supposed to be about a week-long trip to the International Space Station ended up lasting over nine months due to technical issues with the vehicle’s thrusters during the docking process, according to NBC News.
In June of 2024, Wilmore and Williams had been on the first crewed test flight of Boeing’s Starliner Capsule, which is intended to transport crews to destinations such as the ISS. After it was made clear that the mission had gone off plan, NASA eventually decided to bring the Starliner Capsule back to Earth without any passengers and have the astronauts return in a SpaceX Capsule.
While in space, the astronauts used this extra time and opportunity to perform several more experiments that they would not have been able to do if this incident did not happen.
The astronauts’ health was a major concern. Earth and Space Science teacher Benjamin Chung stated, “It’s pretty demanding. Weightlessness affects the body both positively and negatively… But that is just temporary.” Chung continued, “From the eyes, to the skin, to DNA, a lot of things are affected when we go to space.” He added, “For instance, you are not protected by the atmosphere, so there’s more radiation that goes through the hull of the ISS and onto our skin.”
Upon their return, the astronauts were ordered by NASA flight surgeons to have a few days of health checks before returning to their homes.
This unforeseen incident caught the attention of President Donald Trump. Once he took office in January, he demanded a quicker return of Wilmore and Williams and claimed that former president Joe Biden abandoned them.
English instructor Brian Kosewic ’16 stated, “I would hope that it wasn’t politically motivated. I think that would be a horrible thing to leave people trapped up in space. I am also not inclined to believe that the president would leave astronauts stranded up there.”
Despite the political discourse surrounding this event, Williams and Wilmore explained in an interview with Fox News that they felt neither abandoned nor neglected. They focused on taking this opportunity to do more research and experiments.
This event has left many rethinking the idea of space travel and its safety. Gisella Bellarosa ’27 stated, “Space travel has always been extremely risky. Of course ending up stuck in space for nine months is unexpected but should be a known risk.”
In any case, Wilmore and Williams showed remarkable resilience and dedication to the exploration of space and the Earth.
