Two National Aeronautics and Space Administration astronauts who piloted the first crewed test flight of Boeing's Starliner capsule were left behind on the International Space Station (ISS) as the spacecraft returned to Earth.
Barry "Butch" Wilmore and Sunita Williams have been stuck on the ISS since June 6. They embarked on their space journey aboard the Starliner, and in NASA's original plan, they would have only been in space for eight days.
The stay is now threatening to stretch out to eight months as hardware malfunctions plagued the spacecraft. Though an option for them to return via the Starliner was considered, NASA announced at the end of August that the pair would have to wait until February 2025 to return home.
There was "just a little disagreement between NASA and Boeing in terms of the level of risk," NASA's Commercial Crew Program manager Steve Stich said. "It just depends on how you evaluate the risk. We did it a little differently with our crew than Boeing did."
The Starliner, which had suffered a series of helium leaks and propulsion issues en route to the ISS in June, made it back to Earth with no major issues, though officials did report an additional problem with one of the vehicle's thrusters or small engines used to keep the vehicle oriented in space. However, the issue did not affect the overall landing.
During a recent news conference, the two astronauts spoke about their experience, opening up on the difficulties they face every day as they wait to be rescued from the ISS.
Wilmore, a Tennessee native and former Navy test pilot, said they had no alternative but to see the Starliner leave the ISS without them because they ran out of time to complete testing the capsule's onboard systems. Plus, they were tight on schedule, as they had to make room for another spacecraft arriving in a few months on the ISS.
"There were things that we just could not get comfortable with. The data could have gotten there. We just simply ran out of time," he said during the virtual conference.
Williams, who has just been named the commander of the ISS, said she is in good spirits. "We're here with our friends, we've got a ride home." She and Wilmore used to work in the Navy, so she said they're not surprised when deployments get changed and their families understand.
"It's risky and that's how it goes in the business," she added.
Despite missing significant moments with their families back home, Williams admitted it wasn't all bad. She highlighted that looking at her home from 260 miles away had its perks.
"It takes you to a different place. It's very peaceful up here," Williams added. "We're excited to fly in two different spacecraft. I mean, we're testers; that's what we do."
Astronauts look forward to voting in space for the November election
Since they will be stuck in space for another five months, Wilmore and Williams expressed their enthusiasm to still be able to exercise their voting rights, even in space, in November.
The Sept. 17 video where the two signified their intention to cast their votes from the spacecraft was posted on X, formerly Twitter.
According to Wilmore, his request for a ballot has already been sent, which he should get in a couple of weeks.
"It's a very important role that we all play as citizens to be included in those elections. And NASA makes it very easy for us to do that, so we're excited about that opportunity," Wilmore said in the video.
Williams agreed, saying: "It's a very important duty that we have as citizens and [I am] looking forward to being able to vote from space, which is pretty cool."
Meanwhile, preparations are already being made for the rescue of both astronauts in February. SpaceX Crew-9 mission commander Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, who will accompany Wilmore and Williams in their return, are expected to arrive at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Sept. 20. They will be quarantined at the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building until the launch. This is to make sure that they avoid any illness before departing for the ISS. (Related: Elon Musk's SpaceX tapped to rescue 2 astronauts stuck in space aboard malfunctioning Boeing Starliner.)
The Crew-9 mission is scheduled to get done with the pre-launch preparations no earlier than Sept. 25. Additional launch windows are available from Sept. 26 to 28. The crew will be on the ISS for five months to do spacewalks, research and experiments before returning to Earth with Wilmore and Williams.
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Watch the video below that talks about NASA's decision to send Starliner back to Earth without Wilmore and Williams.
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