posted 02-05-2025 06:06 AM
Will this be the month when Crew-9, along with Wilmore and Williams, return from the ISS as planned?
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 02-05-2025 09:06 AM
Crew-9 is not scheduled to return to Earth until early April, after a handover with Crew-10. A date has not been set.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 02-06-2025 12:02 PM
Ars Technica is reporting that Crew-9 may now come home as early as March 19.
SpaceX and NASA are still working to resolve the C213 Dragon issue, which may be related to batteries on the spacecraft. NASA now believes the vehicle will not be ready for its debut launch until late April. Therefore, according to sources at the agency, NASA has decided to swap vehicles for Crew-10. The space agency has asked SpaceX to bring forward the C210 vehicle, which returned to Earth last March after completing the Crew-7 mission.
Known as Endurance, the spacecraft was next due to fly the private Axiom-4 mission to the space station later this spring. Sources said SpaceX is now working toward a no-earlier-than March 12 launch date for Crew-10 on Endurance. If this flight occurs on — and the date is not certain, as it depends on other missions on SpaceX's Falcon 9 manifest — the Crew-9 astronauts, including Wilmore and Williams, could fly home on March 19.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 02-11-2025 04:06 PM
Although NASA has not set a specific date, Crew-9 is now expected to return to Earth following a several-day handover period with the Crew-10 crew in March.
The Crew-10 launch now is targeted for Wednesday, March 12, pending mission readiness and completion of the agency's certification of flight readiness process.
denali414 Member
Posts: 894 From: Raleigh, NC Registered: Aug 2017
posted 02-20-2025 09:02 AM
Why does Musk still say "The astronauts are stranded and its political"?
The astronauts say they are not stranded, and Musk agreed back in September the schedule to return them. Why go on Hannity and lie? I do not understand his game or what is happening.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 02-20-2025 02:16 PM
Must is doubling down on his "politics" claim. Today he called ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen (SpaceX Crew-7 pilot and ISS Expedition 70 commander) "retarded" and an "idiot" for saying otherwise, to which Mogensen responded:
Elon, I have long admired you and what you have accomplished, especially at SpaceX and Tesla.
You know as well as I do, that Butch and Suni are returning with Crew-9, as has been the plan since last September. Even now, you are not sending up a rescue ship to bring them home. They are returning on the Dragon capsule that has been on ISS since last September.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 02-20-2025 04:16 PM
NASA today restated its plans for bringing Crew-9 home:
NASA is focused on safely executing our crew rotation missions and work aboard the International Space Station for the benefit of humanity and future long-duration missions to the Moon and Mars.
In January, President Trump announced he asked Elon Musk's SpaceX to bring NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams home from the space station as soon as possible. NASA and SpaceX expeditiously reviewed its joint crew rotation operations and changed the Dragon spacecraft for the launch of the agency's Crew-10 mission. This decision safely accelerates the target launch of Crew-10 and the return of Crew-9, pending mission readiness and completion of the agency’s upcoming certification of flight readiness process.
SpaceAholic Member
Posts: 5448 From: Sierra Vista, Arizona Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-05-2025 04:17 PM
On Tuesday (March 4), Butch Wilmore, Suni Williams, and Nick Hague participated from orbit in a news conference with reporters.
Unfortunately, the answers themselves did not provide too much clarity. On one hand, Wilmore says "politics is not playing into this at all" in reference to his extended stay in space. On the other hand, he says he believes Musk, after the founder of SpaceX said he offered to bring NASA astronauts back in 2024, but that this option was rebuffed by the White House for political reasons.
Q. Did politics influence NASA's decision for you to stay longer in space?
Wilmore: From my standpoint, politics is not playing into this at all. From our standpoint, I think that they would agree, we came up prepared to stay long, even though we plan to stay short. That's what we do in human spaceflight. That's what your nation's human space flight program is all about, planning for unknown, unexpected contingencies. And we did that, and that's why we flowed right into Crew 9, into Expedition 72 as we did. And it was somewhat of a seamless transition, because we had planned ahead for it, and we were prepared.
Q. Elon Musk said he made an offer to bring Butch and Suni home last year, but it was denied by the White House. Is this true?
Wilmore: I can only say that Mr. Musk, what he says, is absolutely factual. We have no information on that, though, whatsoever; what was offered, what was not offered; who it was offered to, how that process went. That's information that we simply don't have. 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.
issman1 Member
Posts: 1159 From: UK Registered: Apr 2005
posted 03-05-2025 10:03 PM
Musk reasserted that the previous U.S. administration deliberately kept Williams and Wilmore on board ISS far longer than anyone expected.
This seems a reasonable assumption, considering both could have splashed down with Crew-8 last October. Or two members of Crew-8 could even have remained on the station an additional six months (as some Russian cosmonauts and other NASA astronauts have previously) thereby permitting them to return sooner.
denali414 Member
Posts: 894 From: Raleigh, NC Registered: Aug 2017
posted 03-06-2025 02:32 AM
This just seems NASA didn't want to waste $20-$30 million of their tight budget to send another Falcon rocket to ISS, knowing already scheduled Crew-10 to arrive in February. Crew-9 is already docked, so can leave in an emergency at anytime.
Musk, in my opinion, the one turning it political. Why would the President care if stayed or came home? He would defer to the experts at NASA to solve situation.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-06-2025 05:41 AM
quote:Originally posted by issman1: ...both could have splashed down with Crew-8 last October. Or two members of Crew-8 could even have remained on the station...
Only in an emergency situation would NASA ever allow the contingency seats to be used. They aren't a viable option for a nominal landing as the crew members who use them would almost certainly sustain serious injuries.
As for leaving Crew-8 members on ISS, why? Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore are very capable astronauts with past ISS experience who were experiencing no problems on orbit. There is no logical reason why returning them earlier would take preference over returning Crew-8 on time.
The only reason to go to any great extents to bring Williams and Wilmore home early would have been political and politics is not a valid reason to overrule NASA's flight team.
issman1 Member
Posts: 1159 From: UK Registered: Apr 2005
posted 03-06-2025 05:58 AM
Yet Crew-9 was sacrificed for the cause, while Crew-8 members (who trained specifically for a long-duration mission) were better placed for an extension due to them already being on board since March 2024.
The rotation could then have happened more or less as originally planned, therefore Musk's revelation makes sense.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-06-2025 06:35 AM
Williams and Wilmore were just as well trained for a long duration stay as were the Crew-8 astronauts.
Musk plays no role in and is not privy to NASA's mission planning. NASA tells SpaceX what it needs, not the other way around. Musk may have thought he was being denied due to politics, but all indications are the decision by station managers, not the White House.
star61 Member
Posts: 322 From: Bristol UK Registered: Jan 2005
posted 03-06-2025 01:13 PM
So what exactly is the point of contingency seats that "almost certainly cause serious injury"?
I would have thought an uncomfortable landing at most would be acceptable.
Also, lots of tumbleweed drifting past as Boeing fixes its minor problems. I have believed all along and stated previously that Boeing messed up from the get go. Nothing has happened to prove otherwise.
And although their space sector is separate from civil aviation, it still operates under the flawed Boeing project management ethos. Too big to fail and too big to criticise is seems.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-06-2025 01:24 PM
Landing with injuries is better than dying in space. The contingency seats were only to be used in the case of a life threatening emergency on the station requiring the crew to evacuate and return to Earth.
As for Boeing, let's not forget, Starliner landed safely. Were it not for an abundance of caution on NASA's part, Williams and Wilmore would be home now, having touched down on Calypso.
Boeing has issues to address and it is doing so. But let's keep the criticism to where it is merited and not write off a capable vehicle just because a test flight ran into problems.
star61 Member
Posts: 322 From: Bristol UK Registered: Jan 2005
posted 03-06-2025 04:32 PM
Criticism is how errors and faulty thinking get corrected. I have no axe to grind and would love to see a successful range of crewed vehicles.
But surely it's not acceptable for Boeing to go unchallenged on the way they have operated. It's 8 months since that flight , so if it was so successful why are they not sending it back up to collect the original crew. And how many years late now?
I would say it's not very capable as it hasn't managed one complete mission. Some of the failure modes appear to be in basic systems that were only replicating what was achieved 50 years ago.
Again, trying not to be too cynical , but the years are marching on and by the time it flies successfully, if it ever does, it will have been superseded.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-06-2025 05:01 PM
Starliner's second orbital flight test (OFT-2) was successful. It launched, docked, undocked and landed. Yes, it had some thruster issues, but so did Dragon on its early flights to the space station and no one labeled those flights as failures.
Why hasn't Boeing sent Starliner back up to the space station? Because NASA decides what vehicles fly there, not the companies. Boeing wanted Williams and Wilmore to return to Earth on Starliner, which in hindsight we know would have been fine, but NASA overruled Boeing and out of an abundance of caution, here we are with Crew-9.
Boeing is now working on correcting its thruster issues that caused the concerns during the crew flight test. Starliner is slated to launch its next crew on an operational mission to the space station in 2026, but when that occurs will be up to NASA.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-16-2025 07:14 PM
The hatches connecting Crew Dragon Freedom to the International Space Station are scheduled to be closed on Monday (March 17) at 10:45 p.m. EDT (0245 GMT March 18), setting up for an undocking on Tuesday at 1:05 a.m. EDT (0505 GMT).
Crew-9 will begin their return home to Earth with a deorbit burn at about 5:11 p.m. EDT (2111 GMT) Tuesday, leading to a splashdown off the coast of Florida (location still to be decided) at approximately 5:57 p.m. (2157 GMT).
Mission managers had originally targeted Crew-9's return for no earlier than Wednesday (March 19). A splashdown on Tuesday continues provides operational flexibility ahead of less favorable weather conditions forecast for later in the week.
SpaceAngel Member
Posts: 513 From: Maryland Registered: May 2010
posted 03-17-2025 08:16 AM
I thought Crew-9 was going to be splashing down in the Pacific Ocean; what's with the change of location?
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-17-2025 09:04 AM
The move to the west coast is not mission specific. SpaceX needs time to prepare its facilities and train personnel. Crew-10 is now scheduled to be the first Dragon crew to splashdown off the west coast of the United States.
GACspaceguy Member
Posts: 3166 From: Guyton, GA Registered: Jan 2006
posted 03-17-2025 10:00 AM
quote:Originally posted by Robert Pearlman: Crew-9 ...leading to a splashdown off the coast of Florida (location still to be decided)
When do we think we will know? I am hoping for a fly over here and a sonic boom.
Larry McGlynn Member
Posts: 1448 From: Boston, MA Registered: Jul 2003
posted 03-17-2025 12:58 PM
I believe they are landing in the Gulf of Amerxico tomorrow late afternoon.
GACspaceguy Member
Posts: 3166 From: Guyton, GA Registered: Jan 2006
posted 03-17-2025 02:08 PM
Thanks Larry, wrong side of Florida for me though.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-17-2025 06:16 PM
NASA video
Watch as the four members of NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 mission begin the final preparations for their return to Earth, currently targeted for Tuesday, March 18.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-17-2025 08:02 PM
NASA video
Crew-9's SpaceX Dragon spacecraft is scheduled to undock from the International Space Station at 1:05 a.m. EST (0505 UTC).
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-18-2025 09:54 AM
From NASA:
Crew-9 will be difficult to spot in the daytime as it reenters Earth's atmosphere, but if you want to keep an eye out for SpaceX's Dragon as it heads home today, we have the map for you.
davidcwagner Member
Posts: 1107 From: Albuquerque, New Mexico Registered: Jan 2003
posted 03-18-2025 10:01 AM
First manned spacecraft to land in the Gulf of America?
Ken Havekotte Member
Posts: 3961 From: Merritt Island, Florida, Brevard Registered: Mar 2001
posted 03-18-2025 10:09 AM
No, there had been other Crew Dragons that have landed in the Gulf of Mexico since 2020, or am I not understanding your question fully?
On edit: Oh, now I see what David means, since there had been a different name consideration for the Gulf area.
GACspaceguy Member
Posts: 3166 From: Guyton, GA Registered: Jan 2006
posted 03-18-2025 10:14 AM
I think the point was the name change.
I did like it when the landed off the coast of JAX as we heard the sonic boom here in our area. I do understand they will not be doing that as the gulf flyover reduces the potential of debris inadvertently making its way to land surfaces.
ejectr Member
Posts: 2038 From: Killingly, CT Registered: Mar 2002
posted 03-18-2025 10:55 AM
Those times appear to be CDT.
GACspaceguy Member
Posts: 3166 From: Guyton, GA Registered: Jan 2006
posted 03-18-2025 11:05 AM
Yes that is what it says in the at the bottom of the legend (shown in the top left corner of the photo) all times are Central time.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-18-2025 12:32 PM
NASA video release
Crew-9 is scheduled to begin their deorbit burn at 5:11 p.m. EDT (2111 UTC) and splash down off the coast of Florida at 5:57 p.m. EDT (2157 UTC).
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-18-2025 03:50 PM
NASA video release
Following the return of NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 mission, NASA and SpaceX will hold a news conference to discuss the crew's return and take media questions.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-18-2025 04:13 PM
NASA photos (NASA/Keegan Barber):
Crew-9 commander Nick Hague
Crew-9 mission specialist Aleksandr Gorbunov
Crew-9 mission specialist Suni Williams
Crew-9 mission specialist Butch Wilmore
Grounded! Member
Posts: 573 From: Bennington, Vermont, USA Registered: Feb 2011
posted 03-18-2025 07:22 PM
I really enjoyed watching Crew 9 come home. The video coverage of the re-entry was beautiful and the weather was great.
I am so happy to see our astronauts back on earth. Thank you SpaceX. Well done!
issman1 Member
Posts: 1159 From: UK Registered: Apr 2005
posted 03-18-2025 08:37 PM
I watched splashdown live on GB News in Britain. Among their interviewees was former NASA astronaut Jack Fischer and Elon Musk's father, Erol, who offered his son's reason for the delayed return of Williams and Wilmore.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-19-2025 05:51 AM
From Johnson Space Center:
NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 touched down at Johnson Space Center's Ellington Field in Houston at 11:19 p.m. CDT, March 18, after their space station mission and successful splashdown earlier that afternoon.
Welcome home, Butch, Suni, Nick, and Aleksandr!
One more shot, the astronauts who came out to welcome Crew-9 home:
GACspaceguy Member
Posts: 3166 From: Guyton, GA Registered: Jan 2006
posted 03-19-2025 06:28 AM
Always great to see that the last few miles of a very long journey ends on a Gulfstream. Welcome home Crew-9!!
ejectr Member
Posts: 2038 From: Killingly, CT Registered: Mar 2002
posted 03-19-2025 07:09 AM
What time is that on Butch's watch... 4:40?
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 54332 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 03-19-2025 07:51 AM
4:40 GMT, which would be 11:40 p.m. CDT. If the Gulfstream touched down at 11:19 p.m., with taxiing and the extra care given to off-loading each crew member, the time makes sense.
posted 02-05-2025 06:06 AM
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