Florida: After spending more than nine months aboard the International Space Station (ISS), NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams have safely returned to Earth. Their SpaceX Dragon capsule, Freedom, made a successful splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico at 3:27 AM IST on Wednesday. Along with them, astronauts Nick Hague and Alexander Gorbunov were also onboard for the return journey.
Upon landing, the first to reach the spacecraft was a U.S. Navy SEAL boat, followed by a thorough 10-minute safety inspection. The capsule was then transferred to the recovery ship MV Megan, where the hatch was opened at 4:10 AM. By 4:25 AM, all astronauts were carefully brought out and taken for medical examinations. From there, they were transported to NASA’s Houston facility by helicopter for further evaluation.
A remarkable sight during the splashdown was a group of dolphins swimming near the spacecraft. Despite the presence of U.S. Coast Guard boats and SpaceX recovery vessels, the dolphins continued their movement around the capsule. NASA shared the stunning aerial footage of the dolphins on social media, capturing the unique moment.
Wilmore and Williams originally launched to the ISS in June 2024 aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, marking its first crewed mission. Their return was initially scheduled within a week but was delayed due to technical issues with the Starliner. After spending 286 days in space, their mission has finally come to an end with a successful return.
