Astronauts back on Earth
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams are finally back on Earth.
Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams finished a nine-month mission to the International Space Station on a test flight that was only supposed to last eight days.
Thruster problems plagued their test flight of a Boeing Starliner space capsule.
NASA decided the pair would return on a Space-X Dragon capsule. NASA insisted the astronauts were not stuck or stranded in space however, their extended stay got drawn into the political conversation.
'Biden left them up there. I have asked Elon, can you get them out? He said yes. He is preparing to go up. I think in two weeks,' said President Donald Trump.
President Donald Trump says he asked NASA and Elon Musk's Space-X to move the launch of the relief crew up by a few weeks.
When asked about the president's comments, Wilmore avoided the fray.
'All of us have the utmost respect for Mr. Musk, and obviously, respect and admiration for our President of the United States, Donald Trump,' said Wilmore.
Williams talked about the difficulty of her prolonged stay.
'I think the hardest part is having the folks on the ground have to not know exactly when we're coming back,' said Williams.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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