After spending over nine months aboard the International Space Station (ISS), NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore are finally set to return to Earth. NASA has confirmed that their journey back will begin on Tuesday, Mar. 18, ending a mission that has lasted far longer than originally planned.
The astronauts, along with another NASA crew member and a Roscosmos cosmonaut, will be making the return trip aboard SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft, which successfully docked with the ISS over the weekend.
The return comes after an unexpected delay caused by technical issues with Boeing's Starliner, which was initially intended to bring them home.
Williams and Wilmore reached the ISS in June 2024 as part of the first-ever crewed mission of Boeing's Starliner spacecraft. But their return was postponed due to problems with the Starliner's propulsion system.
As a result, NASA opted to keep them aboard the ISS while evaluating alternative options. Ultimately, it was decided that they would return in SpaceX's Crew Dragon. The delay extended their stay on the space station well beyond the original schedule.
When And Where Will They Splash Down?
NASA has confirmed that the Crew Dragon capsule carrying Wilmore and Williams will splash down off the Florida coast at around 5:57 p.m. EDT on Mar. 18 (3:27 a.m. IST, Mar. 19). NASA and SpaceX will continue to monitor conditions at sea and will confirm the exact splashdown site closer to the return time.
How To Watch Sunita Williams' Homecoming Live Stream
NASA will provide live streaming of Crew-9's return, beginning with hatch closure preparations at 10:45 p.m. EDT on Mar. 17 (8:15 a.m. IST, Mar. 18).
.@NASA will provide live coverage of Crew-9's return to Earth from the @Space_Station, beginning with @SpaceX Dragon hatch closure preparations at 10:45pm ET Monday, March 17.
March 16, 2025
Splashdown is slated for approximately 5:57pm Tuesday, March 18: https://t.co/yABLg20tKX pic.twitter.com/alujSplsHmSunita Williams Return To Earth: Full Schedule
Mar. 17, 10:45 p.m. EDT (8:15 a.m. IST, Mar. 18) – Hatch closure coverage starts on NASA+
Mar. 18, 12:45 a.m. EDT (10:15 a.m. IST, Mar. 18) – Live coverage of undocking begins
Mar. 18, 1:05 a.m. EDT (10:35 a.m. IST, Mar. 18) – Undocking from the ISS
Mar. 18, 5:11 p.m. EDT (2:41 a.m. IST, Mar. 19) – Deorbit burn (approximate)
Mar. 18, 5:57 p.m. EDT (3:27 a.m. IST, Mar. 19) – Splashdown (approximate)
Mar. 18, 7:30 p.m. EDT (5:00 a.m. IST, Mar. 19) – Post-splashdown press briefing
For those keen on watching, NASA+ will stream the entire event live.
A Mission That Lasted Longer Than Expected
While their extended stay was not initially planned, this duration is far shorter than the US space record of 371 days set by NASA astronaut Frank Rubio aboard the ISS in 2023 and the world record held by Russian cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov, who spent 437 consecutive days on the Mir space station.
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