Astronauts Williams and Wilmore Return Safely After Extended 286-Day Mission Aboard ISS, Concluding Unique Commercial Crew Swap

NASA astronauts Sunita "Suni" Williams and Barry "Butch" Wilmore, along with Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, safely returned to Earth aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, splashing down off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida. The mission marked the end of Crew-9, NASA's ninth commercial crew rotation to the International Space Station (ISS). Williams and Wilmore's journey was extended to 286 days due to propulsion issues with Boeing's Starliner spacecraft, which was initially intended for their return. They were reassigned to SpaceX's Crew Dragon, making them the first astronauts to fly on two different commercial spacecraft during a single mission. Hague and Gorbunov launched separately on SpaceX's Dragon Freedom. The crew contributed to over 150 scientific experiments and technology demonstrations, including research on plant growth, stem cell technology, and testing lighting systems for circadian rhythms. Williams now holds the record for total spacewalking time by a female astronaut, with 62 hours and 6 minutes.