NASA astronauts returning to Earth aboard SpaceX Dragon after extended ISS stay due to Starliner failure

Williams and Wilmore depart ISS aboard SpaceX capsule after extended mission

NASA astronauts Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams have finally begun their return journey to Earth after spending nine months aboard the International Space Station (ISS) due to the failure of Boeing’s Starliner capsule. The two astronauts, originally scheduled for a short week-long test mission, were forced to stay on the space station after technical failures grounded their return craft.

On Tuesday, March 18, 2025, at 1:05 AM ET (5:05 AM GMT), a SpaceX Dragon capsule, carrying Wilmore, Williams, NASA astronaut Nicholas Hague, and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, undocked from the ISS. Their 17-hour descent will conclude with a scheduled splashdown off the Florida coast at approximately 6:00 PM ET, though the exact landing site will depend on weather and sea conditions.

Boeing Starliner failure delayed astronauts’ return

Wilmore and Williams originally arrived at the ISS on June 6, 2024, on Starliner’s maiden crewed flight, meant to assess the spacecraft’s docking and operational capabilities. However, a series of technical malfunctions and safety concerns forced NASA and Boeing to send the capsule back to Earth empty in September.

With no immediate return plan, NASA incorporated the astronauts into ISS operations, reassigning their intended replacements to future missions. Their prolonged stay sparked political controversy, with figures like Elon Musk and former President Donald Trump making conflicting claims about their situation.

Political controversy surrounding the mission

Elon Musk, SpaceX founder and Trump ally, claimed that the Biden administration “abandoned” the astronauts, though no evidence supports this. Trump himself attempted to frame last week’s routine ISS crew rotation as a rescue mission orchestrated by the White House.

In response to Musk’s claims, Wilmore told reporters from space:

“We have no information on … what was offered, what was not offered, who it was offered to, how that process went.”

Yet, in a previous interview, he clarified:

“We don’t feel abandoned, we don’t feel stuck, we don’t feel stranded… Let’s change the rhetoric to ‘prepared and committed’—that’s what we prefer.”

Musk also engaged in a public dispute with Danish astronaut Andreas Mogensen, who refuted claims of abandonment, pointing out that Williams and Wilmore’s return had been scheduled since September. The controversy escalated when Musk insulted Mogensen online, drawing criticism from retired astronauts Scott and Mark Kelly, with Mark Kelly later parting ways with his Tesla vehicle in protest.

Live coverage and NASA’s next steps for Starliner

NASA will broadcast live coverage of the final descent and splashdown on NASA TV and its streaming service, NASA+, followed by a post-mission press conference.

Meanwhile, Boeing’s Starliner program remains under scrutiny. Engineers at White Sands, New Mexico, are still investigating thruster malfunctions and helium leaks from the failed mission. Reports suggest that Starliner is unlikely to fly again in 2025, but Boeing remains committed to certifying the spacecraft for future crewed missions under NASA’s commercial crew program.

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