ISS Crew Departure from NASA Today; Disregard Donald Trump's "Rescue" Claims Regarding Mission
Spaced-Out Saga: Revisiting NASA's Space Rescue
Breaking news! NASA's much-awaited Crew-10 mission is all set to unfurl, ushering in a long-awaited homecoming for the Starliner astronauts who've endured nine grueling months in space. This mission will be the final piece in the puzzle, bringing Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams back to Mother Earth after their marathon space sojourn. But let's put some perspective on this recent frenzy, as it's not quite the high-octane rescue mission that Donald Trump is trying to turn it into.
On Wednesday, at 7:48 p.m. ET, the Kennedy Space Center in Florida will ignite the engines for Crew-10's launch, sending the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft soaring into the cosmos. This remarkable vessel will carry four fearless explorers - NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) mission specialist Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov - en route to the International Space Station (ISS) for a thrilling four-month stint.
The imminent arrival of the new crew signifies an opportune moment for Wilmore and Williams, who first ventured into the orbiting lab nine months ago, aboard Boeing's CST-100 Starliner. Unfortunately, due to certain technical issues, the Starliner was declared unfit to bring the crew back to Earth, leaving the space agency in a bind. To ensure their safety, NASA swiftly devised a backup plan, working tirelessly to bring the astronauts back home securely.
However, as with any space mission, unpredictable complexities were aplenty, leading to an overstay of nine tiring months for our courageous crew members. Shortly after stepping into office, President Trump took it upon himself to weigh in on the matter, trumpeting his eagerness to save the stranded astronauts. With a post on Truth Social, he labeled his intentions as a rescue operation, claiming that he had requested SpaceX founder and CEO, Elon Musk, to "extract the two intrepid astronauts who have essentially been left adrift by the Biden Administration."
However, Trump was seemingly oblivious to the ongoing endeavors by NASA to facilitate these astronauts' return. In fact, on September 28, 2024, NASA launched its Crew-9 mission, which was initially intended to retrieve Wilmore and Williams. Thus, his intervention is questionable, to say the least.
Let's review the chronology of events. NASA launched Crew-9 on September 28, 2024, with two astronauts (Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov) to accommodate Wilmore and Williams, but technical complications delayed their departure. This setback postponed the crew handover until Crew-10 arrived at the space station, currently expected to happen sometime in April. NASA eventually decided to switch the SpaceX crew spacecraft to retrieve the Starliner astronauts later this month.
So, if we assess President Trump's "rescue mission" claims, one might argue that, at best, it resulted in a delay of two additional weeks for the astronauts. Hence, calling it a rescue mission might be a stretch.
Stay tuned for more updates on this extraordinary spaced-out tale, as our astronaut heroes prepare for their much-deserved homecoming.
- In 2024, on Wednesday, NASA's Crew-9 mission, led by Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov, was launched to retrieve Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, marking an initial attempt to return the stranded astronauts.
- Despite President Trump's claims, his intervention seems to have only led to a delay of approximately two weeks for the astronauts, as technical complications in the Crew-9 mission postponed their departure.
- This delay allowed for the SpaceX crew spacecraft of Crew-10 to take over the primary role of retrieving the Starliner astronauts, a mission that is now scheduled to occur later in April.
- Thus, while President Trump might have labeled his intentions as a rescue mission, the delay seems more nonsensical than heroic, as the astronauts' return is now underway through a more conventional means.