The stage is all set for NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore to finally set to return to Earth after spending nearly nine months at the International Space Station (ISS).
Originally scheduled to stay at the ISS for a week in June last year, Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore had to over nine months due to technical issues with Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, which had to facilitate their return.
The return of astronauts to Earth is part of a contingency plan devised by NASA with technical assistance from Elon Musk’s company SpaceX. The company’s Crew Dragon capsule arrived on the space station Saturday night to rescue stranded “Butch and Suni.”
What time will Sunita Williams return to Earth?
The Dragon spacecraft hatch was closed at 8:15 am on Tuesday (today) IST. Sunita Williams and Butch Willmore, with astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, are poised to undock from the ISS at 1:05 am ET (10:35 am IST on Tuesday) and begin a seventeen-hour trip back to Earth.
As per the schedule shared by NASA on its website, the crew is expected to splash down in the Gulf of Mexico (renamed as Gulf of America by the Trump administration) at 5:57 pm EST on Tuesday, March 18 (3:27 am IST, Wednesday, March 19). The exact location of the landing will depend on local weather conditions, NASA said.
Where to watch?
NASA is providing live coverage of the agency’s SpaceX Crew-9 return to Earth from the International Space Station, beginning with Dragon spacecraft hatch closure on website since Monday, March 17.
NASA TV: The event is also being live-streamed on NASA TV through their official website.
The return of astronauts to Earth is part of a contingency plan devised by NASA with technical assistance from Elon Musk’s company SpaceX.
YouTube: NASA’s official YouTube channel will also broadcast the event live since 10.15 am when the undocking begins.
