NASA's SpaceX Crew-10 mission has docked at the International Space Station (ISS) on Sunday (Mar 16) after undertaking about a 29-hour long journey. The spacecraft will soon bring back stranded NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore to earth.

Advertisment

The Dragon spacecraft was launched aboard the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Centre in Florida at 7.03 pm ET on Friday (Mar 14). The Dragon docked on the ISS at 12:04 am on Sunday (Mar 16).

Also read | What is 'Baby Feet,' NASA's Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore likely to experience after returning to Earth?

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10 docking

Advertisment

NASA announced that the hatch of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft opened March 16 at 1:35 am ET, following which the members of the Crew 10 entered the space station to join the astronauts aboard.

The four crew members included NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov. 

Also read | 'Stranded' NASA astronauts Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore to return to Earth soon; SpaceX's swap team launches to ISS

Advertisment

Crew-10 astronauts have joined the Expedition 72 crew of NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Don Petitt, Suni Williams, and Butch Wilmore, as well as Roscosmos cosmonauts Aleksandr Gorbunov, Alexey Ovchinin, and Ivan Vagner. This brings a total crew strength at the space station to 11 people.

The Crew-10 members will become part of the Expedition 72 after taking over duties from the returning members. They will stay on the space station for roughly about six months.

Also read | NASA astronaut Sunita Williams will return to Earth on THIS date | Check here

Stranded NASA astronauts to return to Earth

Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore will now finally return to earth with Hague and Gorbunov after the crew 'handover' period.

“Houston, thanks for tuning in early morning. Great to see our friends arrive,” said Sunita Williams on the arrival of Crew-10.

The astronauts are expected to depart from the ISS for Earth on Wednesday (Mar 19) as early as 8 am.

Also read | Sunita Williams to get 'baby feet' after returning to Earth. What does it mean?

What was scheduled to be a 10-day mission in space turned out to be a nearly 10-month expedition after NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore were stranded on the space station. 

The duo embarked on the journey aboard the Boeing Starliner on June 5, 2024. However, they were unable to return after the spacecraft experienced thruster malfunctions during its approach and docking manoeuvres.

Following an extensive investigation on ground by NASA and Boeing, the spacecraft was deemed too risky to carry the astronauts back home, resulting in their unexpected extended stay at the space station.

(With inputs from agencies)