Two NASA astronauts who flew to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard Boeing’s Starliner will have to wait a long time to return home. NASA has delayed the launch of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, designated as the Starliner astronauts’ ride home.
Originally scheduled to lift off in February 2025, NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10 will launch before the end of March 2025 to “complete processing on the new Dragon mission spacecraft,” the space agency wrote in an update. The new Dragon spacecraft will arrive at SpaceX’s processing facility in Florida in early January. “The design, assembly, testing, and final assembly of a new spacecraft is a complex task that requires great attention to detail,” said Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, in a statement.
After launching the ISS with Crew-10 astronauts, the Dragon spacecraft will be used to transport the SpaceX Crew-9 mission back to Earth. That includes NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov.
Williams and Wilmore launched to the ISS on June 5 aboard Boeing’s Starliner in the first test flight of the space crew. Starliner’s journey to the ISS was less than ideal; five spacecraft thrusters failed and the spacecraft developed five helium leaks, one of which was identified before liftoff. The crew capsule sat on the ISS for months while NASA and Boeing debated whether Starliner was ready to safely return astronauts to Earth. The mission teams finally decided to recover the malfunctioning Starliner and bring its crew back to space on the SpaceX Dragon.
This marked a major blow to Boeing’s Starliner program, but it also meant that two astronauts would have to spend an unexpectedly long time aboard the ISS. The Starliner crew was originally supposed to be in space for a week or so, but astronauts are now forced to spend months living and working on the space station. The latest delay to the launch of Crew-10 is yet another month added to William and Wilmore’s unplanned time in space.
Astronauts typically spend about six months aboard the ISS, with some staying in space for a little over a year. Recent media reports have raised concerns about Williams’ health after spending so much time aboard the ISS, but the astronaut dismissed speculation about his weight loss.
Starliner’s Crewed Flight Test is part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, which aims to transport crew and cargo to and from the ISS under a $4.3 billion contract with the space agency. Another commercial partner of NASA, SpaceX, has launched nine crew members to the space station, and is preparing for the ascent of Crew-10. NASA had hoped to launch the Starliner on its first mission early next year, but the space agency chose to put Boeing’s plan on hold until it determined the best way to get it approved.
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