NASA’s Stuck Astronauts Finally on Their Way Back to Earth After 9 Months in Space

The SpaceX capsule carrying NASA astronauts Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, and Nick Hague, and Russian astronaut Alexander Gorbunov, undocks from the International Space Station on March 18, 2025. NASA via AP

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.—NASA’s two stuck astronauts headed back to Earth with SpaceX on Tuesday to close out a dramatic marathon mission that began with a bungled Boeing test flight more than nine months ago.

Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams bid farewell to the International Space Station—their home since last spring—departing aboard a SpaceX capsule alongside two other astronauts. The capsule undocked in the wee hours and aimed for a splashdown off the Florida coast by early evening, weather permitting.