Photo: NASA
NEEDHAM, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — The two NASA astronauts will stay in space until February and return on SpaceX.
Needham native Sunita “Suni” Williams and fellow astronaut Butch Wilmore boarded the International Space Station on June 5. Their mission was only supposed to last about a week, scheduled to return June 14.
However, the Boeing Starliner, the spacecraft that took the pair into the I-S-S, experienced thrust damage and helium leak.
The two astronauts have been in limbo since, waiting for NASA’s decision on whether they could return home with the Starliner.
During a press briefing on Saturday, Aug. 24, NASA said it’s too risky and Wilmore and Williams will stay in space, added that the decision to bring “the Boeing Starliner home uncrewed is a result of a commitment to safety," NASA administrator Bill Nelson said during the briefing.
In six months, Space-X’s Crew 9 capsule will now bring the two astronauts home.
“When we started to weigh all these options, it became very obvious that Crew 9 was the best option to fly up two empty seats,” NASA’s Commercial Crew Program Manager Steve Stitch said at the briefing.
According to NASA, Wilmore and Williams will assist with science experiments, maintenance, and maybe some spacewalks as well during their six month extended stay on the I-S-S.
WBZ NewsRadio’s Suzanne Sausville (@WBZSausville) reports.
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