NASA’s two stuck astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, may return to Earth sooner than initially planned due to a new plan. SpaceX will switch capsules for upcoming astronaut flights to bring the pair back in mid-March instead of late March or April.
The change comes after the test pilots experienced trouble getting to the International Space Station on Boeing’s Starliner capsule. NASA has since reassigned them to fly on SpaceX, but the launch was delayed due to additional prepping work on a new capsule. The space agency now plans to have an older capsule launch on March 12, targeting their return earlier than previously expected.
The new crew includes two NASA astronauts and one from Japan and Russia, arriving at the space station before sending the old crew back with Wilmore and Williams. This change follows President Donald Trump’s vow to accelerate the astronauts’ return, along with SpaceX’s Elon Musk.
Source: https://apnews.com/article/nasa-stuck-astronauts-suni-butch-1ee410a50cb2413d62c208ecc6946614