Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita “Suni” Williams were sent to space for eight days on June 5, 2024, but two months later, they are still there and aren’t expected to return home until February of next year.
Williams was born on September 19, 1965, in Euclid, Ohio. Before the Boeing Flight Test, She had been part of two missions aboard the International Space Station and was a former record holder for most spacewalk time for a woman. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Physical Science along with a Master’s Degree in Engineering Management. Williams is also a veteran of the U.S. Navy. After being in the Navy, she was selected by NASA in 1998 to become an astronaut and has been doing many other things during her time at the space station.
“Selected as an astronaut by NASA in June 1998, she reported for training in August 1998,” NASA.gov stated. “After her first flight, she served as Deputy Chief of the Astronaut Office. She then supported a long-duration mission as Flight Engineer for Expedition 32 and International Space Station Commander for Expedition 33. Williams has spent a total of 322 days in space throughout her two missions.”
Wilmore was born in 1962 in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and is a veteran of two spaceflights. He two has a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in Electrical Engineering. After serving in the U.S. Navy, Wilmore was selected to become an astronaut in July of 2000.
“Wilmore has logged 178 days in space. He completed his first flight as pilot on STS-129 where he logged more than 259 hours (11 days) in space. From September to November 2014, he served as a Flight Engineer aboard the International Space Station for Expedition 41 and then as commander of Expedition 42 from November 2014 to March 2015 totaling 167 days in space,” NASA.gov said.
The two experienced astronauts were sent to test-drive the Starliner to ensure everything was able to do well in space and that there would be no complications in the future. However, there seem to be many complications with the new spacecraft. There are multiple helium leaks and thruster issues in the propulsion.
With the hope that these issues can be overcome, Boeing and NASA have been working diligently to get the two get home safely. Over the weekend, NASA and Boeing agreed that the two will return home with Crew 9 on Elon Musk’s SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule, in February of 2025 and the Starliner will remain uncrewed during its flight back.
However, Williams is perfectly fine with the extended trip.
“Butch and I have been up here before, and it feels like coming home,” Williams said on NY Times. “It’s great to be up here, so I’m not complaining.”
Although they probably wish they could go back to Earth, Wilmore and Williams are doing okay, and are being watched to ensure everything continues to be okay.
