Astronauts stuck at International Space Station reach home planet

UPDATE
The two stranded NASA astronauts have finally returned to Earth, splashing down in the US after their week-long mission turned into a staggering 286-day space stay.

Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams splashed down off the coast of Florida aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule at 5.57pm ET (8.57am AEDT Wednesday) after a 17-hour-journey from the International Space Station (ISS).

The pair had blasted off from the ISS – where they have been stuck for the past nine months – along with NASA’s Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, at around 4.05pm AEDT on Tuesday.

After splashdown, Mr Hauge could be heard telling mission control the crew were “grinning ear to ear”.

Rescue crews quickly swooped in to retrieve the capsule – which was seen bobbing in the water alongside a pod of about five dolphins.

The dolphins, who passed by right in time to welcome the astronauts back to Earth, didn’t go unnoticed by NASA or those watching at home.

“You could see the dolphins swimming around the capsule, which was kind of incredible,” NASA commercial crew program manager Steve Stich said of the sight.

Rescue crews transported the Dragon capsule to a large recovery ship, where the astronauts were able to exit the craft.

Mr Hauge and Mr Gorbunov were the first crew members to exit the capsule, lifted out of the hatch and placed onto stretchers, as per the standard procedure.

Ms Williams was the next to exit the craft, sharing a thumbs up and a wave to the camera as she was met with applause.

An elated Mr Wilmore followed, sharing two thumbs up after he was lifted onto the stretcher.

The crew will now be flown to Houston, where they will complete a 45-day rehabilitation program.

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NASA ‘ALIEN’ GREETS SPACEX CREW
A fun-loving ‘alien’ made a surprise appearance for the newly arrived SpaceX crew that docked at the International Space Station to relieve two NASA astronauts stranded for nine months.

The newly arrived SpaceX crew that docked at the International Space Station (ISS) has been greeted by Crew-9 commander Nick Hague, who had playfully donned* an alien mask inside the ISS as his crew eagerly awaited the arrival of Dragon Crew-10.

As other crew members helped prepare the capsule for disembarkation*, Mr Hague was captured on the NASA livestream floating around the space station in an alien mask and a black hoodie, occasionally gesturing like an extraterrestrial character.

Mr Hague’s alien antics went viral, as social media users applauded the astronaut’s good humour.

Costumes have become a tradition aboard the space station over the years, especially on Halloween.

In years past, NASA astronauts have dressed up as Superman, Spider-Man, a Minion, Darth Vader, Waldo and the Mario Brothers.

SpaceX launched Crew Dragon 10 to the station from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Friday to relieve Crew-9 members from their duties aboard the orbiting observatory*.

Now Crew-9, consisting of Mr Hague, Sunita “Suni” Williams, Butch Wilmore and Aleksandr Gorbunov, will undock from the station and return to Earth as early as Wednesday.

Mr Williams and Ms Wilmore have been stuck at the ISS since June 2024, when issues with their Boeing Starliner prevented their return, originally planned for eight days after their arrival.

They were supposed to leave after the arrival of Mr Hague and Mr Gorbunov in September, but the backup plan fell through because the space station would not have had an emergency pod for the remaining crews.

The Crew Dragon capsule, named Endurance, docked at the ISS just after 3pm Sunday, AEST.

Mr Wilmore helped open the capsule hatch, officially linking the station with the newly arrived spacecraft.

The 62-year-old astronaut rang the ship’s bell as the new arrivals entered the main station, greeting their counterparts* with handshakes and hugs.

Ms Williams, who had been snapping photos of the happy occasion, spoke to mission control after the hugs.

“Houston, thank you for tuning in this early morning,” she said. “It was a wonderful day. Great to see our friends arrive. Thank you so much.”

Mr Wilmore and Ms Williams, both two former US Navy pilots, have been stuck aboard the orbital lab since June. They were testing the Boeing Starliner on its maiden* crewed voyage when the spacecraft suffered propulsion* issues and was deemed unfit to fly them back to Earth.

Instead, Starliner returned empty, without experiencing major issues – and what was meant to have been a brief round trip for Wilmore and Williams has now stretched past nine months.

Their space stay is significantly longer than the standard ISS rotation for astronauts of roughly six months.

But it is still much shorter than the US space record of 371 days, set by NASA astronaut Frank Rubio aboard the ISS in 2023, or the world record held by Russian cosmonaut* Valeri Polyakov, who spent 437 continuous days aboard the Mir space station.

Still, the unexpected nature of their prolonged* separation from their families – during which they’ve needed extra clothing and personal care items because they didn’t pack enough – has garnered* global interest and sympathy.

Now the Crew-10 spaceship has successfully docked, the Crew-9 team can prepare for departure and their planned ocean splashdown off the Florida coast, no sooner than March 19.

Along with Mr Wilmore and Ms Williams, NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov will also be aboard the returning Dragon capsule.

The Crew-10 team consists of NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, Japanese astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos* cosmonaut Kirill Peskov. During their mission, the new crew will conduct a range of scientific experiments, including flammability tests for future spacecraft designs and research into the effects of space on the human body.

– with AFP

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GLOSSARY

• donned: put on, wore, threw on, got dressed in something
• disembarkation: process of unloading passengers or goods from a ship, aircraft or spacecraft
• observatory: a building from which scientists can watch the planets, the stars, the weather
• counterparts: a person or thing identical to or closely resembling another, colleagues
• maiden: the first journey of a new aircraft or ship
• propulsion: a force that pushes something forward
• cosmonaut: a Russian astronaut
• prolonged: lengthy, has continued for a long time
• garnered: gathered, collected, earned something
• Roscosmos: the Russian government organisation responsible for managing the Russian space program

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QUICK QUIZ

1. What unusual character awaited the SpaceX crew when they arrived at the International Space Station?
2. What are some of the other characters NASA astronauts have dressed as over the years?
3. How many days were Sunita “Suni” Williams and Butch Wilmore stranded in space?
4. What marine mammal greeted their returning capsule at splashdown off the coast of Florida?
5. What is the world record for a human in space?

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CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Unexplained absence
If your mum, dad or someone you love was an astronaut and went on a mission for what they thought was nine days, but has turned into nine months, how would it affect your relationship and different aspects of your and their life?

Time: allow 15 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Science, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking

2. Extension
What feelings would these astronauts be having about coming back to Earth and their daily life?

Do you think NASA would or should offer some professional help to help them settle and readjust back to life on Earth? Explain your answer.

Time: allow 10 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Science, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking

VCOP ACTIVITY
Imaginative dialogue
Imagine you were there when the crew splashed down and were greeted by a pod of dolphins.

Create a conversation between two astronauts from the article – or you may want to include yourself as one of the characters. Don’t forget to try to use facts and details from the article to help make your dialogue as realistic as possible.

Go through your writing and highlight any punctuation you have used in green. Make sure you carefully check the punctuation used for the dialogue and ensure you have opened and closed the speaking in the correct places.