Sunita Williams Returns to Earth, Welcomed by Dolphins in Splashdown

Photo : X / @NASA_Johnson / @NASA_Astronauts

NASA astronauts Sunita "Suni" Williams and Barry "Butch" Willmore have finally come back to Earth after spending 288 days in space. Their mission was only supposed to last eight days, but they ended up staying for nine months because of technical problems that left them stuck on the International Space Station (ISS).

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The two astronauts were part of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 team, along with American astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov. They returned to Earth aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft, which safely splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean near Florida at 3:27 AM. Their landing marked the end of their unexpectedly long stay in space.

However, it was the sight of dolphins swimming near the capsule during the recovery that became a viral moment. As recovery teams worked to secure the spacecraft, a group of dolphins was seen jumping and playing in the water nearby. The beautiful scene quickly spread on social media and won the hearts of people around the world.

After the capsule was pulled out of the water, the hatch was opened for the first time in nearly nine months. Williams and Willmore, who had been in zero gravity for so long, were helped out of the capsule. They were then flown to Houston, Texas, where they will go through a 45-day recovery program. This is needed to help their bodies adjust back to Earth’s gravity after being weightless for so long.

Their return began when the Crew-9 spacecraft undocked from the ISS at 10:35 AM IST. NASA shared footage showing the Dragon capsule slowly moving away from the space station. SpaceX, the private space company led by Elon Musk, handled the mission. The astronauts’ Dragon capsule was originally launched into space on a Falcon 9 rocket and was now bringing them back home.

Williams and Willmore had started their journey on June 5 last year aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. It was the first-ever crewed mission for Starliner. However, what was meant to be a short trip turned into a long ordeal when the spacecraft had propulsion problems. The vehicle was declared unsafe for re-entry, so NASA sent it back to Earth without a crew in September, leaving the astronauts stuck on the ISS.

To rescue them, NASA turned to SpaceX. In an unusual move, SpaceX sent only two astronauts aboard the Crew-9 Dragon spacecraft in September. This left space for Williams and Willmore to join the return trip.

After many delays, SpaceX’s Crew-10 mission finally reached the ISS. They replaced Crew-9 and took over their duties. With the new team in place, Williams and Willmore were finally able to start their journey back home. Their safe return was a big relief for their families and the space community, and it showed how unpredictable space travel can be.

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