Can you imagine being stranded in outer space, away from everything important to you? While this is unlikely for the common person due to our technological limitations, that is not the case for astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore. As the first two astronauts sent into space by Boeing, they were supposed to spend one to two weeks in the International Space Station, otherwise known as the ISS. They went up on Boeing’s new spacecraft, the Starliner, and had the job of ensuring that the ship was working. However, due to repeated technical issues during the lead-up to the flight and more issues throughout the flight, the astronauts were left stranded on the ISS.
Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams (left to right), who are about to board
the spacecraft Starliner on May 6th, before the flight was eventually called off and
rescheduled for a later date. They later went up to the ISS on the same spacecraft.
Williams and Wilmore originally left for the ISS on June 5th, 2024. While NASA and Boeing are trying to avoid publicly stating that the two astronauts are stuck in space, the astronauts have long since surpassed their return date to Earth and have been waiting for another spacecraft to bring them back home. They are expected to stay in space for eight months total since a spacecraft isn’t able to bring them back until February.
This spacecraft will be supplied by SpaceX. As of September 29, 2024, SpaceX’s Freedom capsule has reached the ISS with two empty seats for Williams and Wilmore. Even with their capsule home within reach, the astronauts will not be able to return home until February, since the mission still needs time in space to conduct research
.
Cited:
Comments