Sunita Williams

Astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore just completed six months on the International Space Station, on a mission which was initially scheduled for just one week

NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Wilmore's health conditions deteriorated after six months in space, health experts raised concern

US elections 2024: Nasa has established a process to allow astronauts to vote while in orbit, ensuring they are not left out of this democratic exercise

From short-term visitors to station commanders: Williams and Wilmore has embraced life on the ISS following gas leak and thruster problem that compromised their capsule's safety

As per Nasa's latest communication, the weather remains less than ideal for a planned undocking. Forecasts indicate that conditions may become more favourable later in the week

SpaceX launched a rescue mission for the two stuck astronauts at the International Space Station on Saturday, sending up a downsized crew to bring them home but not until next year. The capsule rocketed into orbit to fetch the test pilots whose Boeing spacecraft returned to Earth empty earlier this month because of safety concerns. The switch in rides left it to NASA's Nick Hague and Russia's Alexander Gorbunov to retrieve Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams. Since NASA rotates space station crews approximately every six months, this newly launched flight with two empty seats reserved for Wilmore and Williams won't return until late February. Officials said there wasn't a way to bring them back earlier on SpaceX without interrupting other scheduled missions. By the time they return, the pair will have logged more than eight months in space. They expected to be gone just a week when they signed up for Boeing's first astronaut flight that launched in June. NASA ultimately decided that ..

A celebrated figure in space exploration, Sunita Williams holds the record for the most spacewalks by a woman and has accumulated over 322 days in space across several missions

Stuck-in-space astronauts Butch Wilmore and Indian-origin Sunita Williams said Friday they appreciated all the prayers and well wishes from strangers back home. It was their first public comments since last week's return of the Boeing Starliner capsule that took them to the International Space Station in June. They remained behind after NASA determined the problem-plagued capsule posed too much risk for them to ride back in. Wilmore and Williams are now full-fledged station crew members, chipping in on routine maintenance and experiments. They along with seven others on board welcomed a Soyuz spacecraft carrying two Russians and an American earlier this week, temporarily raising the station population to 12, a near record. The two Starliner test pilots both retired Navy captains and longtime NASA astronauts will stay at the orbiting laboratory until late February. They have to wait for a SpaceX capsule to bring them back. That spacecraft is due to launch later this month with a ..

After months of turmoil over its safety, Boeing's new astronaut capsule departed the International Space Station on Friday without its crew and headed back to Earth. NASA's two test pilots stayed behind at the space station their home until next year as the Starliner capsule undocked 260 miles (420 kilometres) over China, springs gently pushing it away from the orbiting laboratory. The return flight was expected to take six hours, with a nighttime touchdown in the New Mexico desert. "She's on her way home," astronaut Sunita Williams radioed after Starliner exited Williams and Butch Wilmore should have flown Starliner back to Earth in June, a week after launching in it. But thruster failures and helium leaks marred their ride to the space station. NASA ultimately decided it was too risky to return the duo on Starliner. So the fully automated capsule left with their empty seats and blue spacesuits along with some old station equipment. SpaceX will bring the duo back in late Februar

Over the weekend, astronaut Butch Wilmore reported a 'strange' pulsing sound from the Starliner craft

The Nasa astronauts reported a pulsating sound coming from the faulty Starliner spacecraft just days ahead of its scheduled unmanned departure from the ISS for its return to Earth

Originally planned as a week-long mission, Sunita Williams' stay has been extended by several months due to repeated helium leaks and other technical challenges

The two astronauts who will spend extra time at the International Space Station are Navy test pilots who have ridden out long missions before. Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have been holed up at the space station with seven others since the beginning of June, awaiting a verdict on how and when they would return to Earth. NASA decided Saturday they won't be flying back in their troubled Boeing capsule, but will wait for a ride with SpaceX in late February, pushing their mission to more than eight months. Their original itinerary on the test flight was eight days. Butch Wilmore Wilmore, 61, grew up in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, playing football for his high school team and later Tennessee Technological University. He joined the Navy, becoming a test pilot and racking up more than 8,000 hours of flying time and 663 aircraft carrier landings. He flew combat missions during the first Gulf War in 1991 and was serving as a flight test instructor when NASA chose him as an ...

NASA said Thursday it will decide this weekend whether Boeing's new capsule is safe enough to return two astronauts from the International Space Station, where they've been waiting since June. Administrator Bill Nelson and other top officials will meet Saturday. An announcement is expected from Houston once the meeting ends. Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams launched aboard Boeing's Starliner on June 5. The test flight quickly encountered thruster failures and helium leaks so serious that NASA kept the capsule parked at the station as engineers debated what to do. SpaceX could retrieve the astronauts, but that would keep them up there until next February. They were supposed to return after a week or so at the station. If NASA decides SpaceX is the way to go, Starliner would return to Earth empty in September. Engineers are evaluating a new computer model for the Starliner thrusters and how they might perform as the capsule descends out of orbit for a touchdown in the U.S.

Former US military Space System Commander, Rudy Ridolfi, lays down three possible scenarios of the stranded astronauts' return to earth onboard Starliner. Here's all you need to know

Prolonged exposure to space radiation can lead to multiple health problems such as an increased risk of cancer, tissue damage, and complications in the nervous system

Nasa is now considering a backup plan that could see astronaut Sunita Williams return aboard SpaceX's Crew Dragon, but not before February 2025

The Starliner has been docked at the ISS for seven weeks longer than expected due to thruster issues and helium leaks, delaying its return to Earth

The Boeing Starliner needs to be undocked from the International Space Station to accommodate the Crew-9 mission set to launch no earlier than August 18

Astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore's mission, initially planned to last a week and conclude in mid-June, has now extended beyond a month as they remain in orbit