NASA astronauts Sunita “Suni” Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore returned to Earth on Mar. 18th after being stranded on the International Space Station for nine months. Originally, the two astronauts were scheduled for an eight-day mission starting June 5, 2024, but their stay was prolonged due to helium leaks and thruster issues in Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. NASA opted to keep them at the ISS until their spacecraft was fixed. During their extended mission, Williams and Wilmore conducted over 150 experiments and even participated in spacewalks, contributing significantly to research regarding microgravity. They were rescued by a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule, which landed off the coast of Florida. Currently, both astronauts are undergoing physical therapy to readjust to Earth’s gravity and regain their muscle strength.
“I am super interested in space research, but I could never actually go to space,” senior Shruthika Swaminathan said. “There’s just so much that could go wrong.”
