Astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore are expected to return to Earth sooner than expected after National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) made a major announcement on Tuesday. The US space agency revealed that it has replaced the astronaut capsule for its Crew-10 mission with a previously flown SpaceX Crew Dragon.
Accelerating the target launch and return dates, NASA in a post on X stated, “NASA and SpaceX are accelerating the target launch and return dates for the upcoming crew rotation missions to and from Space Station. Crew10 launch now is targeted for March 12.” Crew-10 mission’s four-member expedition crew is set to bring the astronauts back to earth.
NASA’s updated timeline
The updated timeline for the upcoming crew rotation missions to and from the International Space Station has now been moved up to March 12. The launch was previously scheduled for March 25. However, the new launch date is “pending mission readiness and completion of flight readiness.” According to NASA, Crew-9 mission will return after completing a handover procedure with the newly arrived Crew-10 expedition team.
Change in plan
This change in schedule was possible because mission management team decided to change the NASA’s original plan due to production delays in arranging new capsule. Since, the Crew-10 mission involving Dragon spacecraft would require additional processing time, the agency decided to use an already flown SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule.
Crew 10 mission capsule
Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore will be brought back in previously flown Dragon capsule called ‘Endurance.’ NASA in a statement said, “Teams will work to complete Dragon’s refurbishment and ready the spacecraft for flight, which includes trunk stack, propellant load, and transportation to SpaceX’s hangar at 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida to be mated with the mission’s Falcon 9 rocket.”
The two astronauts had flown off to the ISS on Boeing’s Starliner capsule on June 5, 2024, for eight-day stay. Following multiple snags in the spacecraft, including a helium leak, they were left stranded at the space station, where Sunita Williams is taking charge of the ISS.
