How long it will take for stranded NASA astronauts to reach Earth as they begin return mission
NASA's most talked-about space mission is finally coming to an end as Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams embark on their long-awaited return home.
Given that the pair were only supposed to be on the International Space Station (ISS) for eight days, they have been stranded there since June 2024.
Their mission was extended due to technical issues with the spacecraft, and an alleged political reluctance to bring them home, according to the likes of Wilmore, Elon Musk and Donald Trump.
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On 7 March, President Trump promised to bring them back to Earth with the help of his SpaceX sidekick.
"Biden left them up there," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
"We have two astronauts that are stuck in space. I have asked Elon (Musk), I said, ‘Do me a favour. Can you get them out?' He said, 'Yes'."
Now, their extended 286-day mission is finally set to come to an end as Williams and Wilmore have officially begun their 17 hour return journey aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule, which undocked from the ISS at 05:05 GMT on Tuesday.
This means that they are expected to land at their planned splashdown site off the coast of Florida at around 21:57 GMT.
While we can only imagine how difficult it's been to be stuck up there for so long, Wilmore insisted that the pair were well equipped to do just that.
"We came up prepared to stay long, even though we plan to stay short. That's what we do in human space flight. That's what your nation's human space flight programme is all about," he said.
Williams, however, said this could be her last ever space mission.
"I think just the fact that we're living up here, in this very unique place, gives you an amazing perspective," she said. "I don't want to lose that spark of inspiration when I leave, so I'm going to have to bottle it somehow."
This comes after the pair were asked in a press conference if the Biden administration declined Musk's offer to bring them back earlier.
"I can only say that Mr Musk, what he says, is absolutely factual," Wilmore claimed.
"So I believe him. I don't know all those details, and I don't think any of us really can give you the answer that maybe that you would be hoping for."
Musk said on X: "The astronauts were only supposed to be up there for eight days and now have been there for eight months.
"SpaceX could have sent up another Dragon and brought them home six months ago, but the Biden-Harris White House (not NASA) refused to allow it.
"President Trump asked to bring them back as soon as possible and we are doing so."
Anish Vij