NASA astronaut Sunita Williams is scheduled to wrap up her extended mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS) in March, after spending over eight months in space. She will return to Earth alongside fellow astronaut Butch Wilmore, following the arrival of Crew-10 next month.
In an exclusive interview with CNN from space, astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore revealed that the Crew-10 mission is set to launch from Earth on March 12. The four-member team will dock with the International Space Station for a six-month mission, maintaining NASA’s ongoing presence aboard the station.
As the current commander of the International Space Station, Sunita Williams will oversee the transition process when Crew-10 arrives. A new Space Station Commander will assume the role during a week-long handover, after which the departing astronauts will begin their return to Earth.
“The plan is that Crew-10 will launch on March 12, complete a week-long turnover, and we will return on March 19,” astronaut Butch Wilmore told CNN.
Williams and Wilmore arrived at the ISS in June 2023 aboard Boeing’s Starliner capsule, which faced technical issues during the journey. Their return has been dependent on the arrival of Crew-10 to ensure adequate staffing for the American segment of the space station.
After the handover, the two seasoned astronauts will board the same Dragon spacecraft that brought Crew-10 to the ISS. The undocking is set for March 19, signaling the conclusion of their extended mission aboard the orbiting laboratory.
In a conversation with NASA officials earlier last month, Williams shared, “It doesn’t feel like we’re cast away. Eventually, we want to go home because we left our families a little while ago, but we have a lot to do while we’re up here.”
