Stranded NASA Astronaut on the ISS Takes a Spacewalk, With Another Planned

NASA astronauts Sunita "Suni" Williams and Barry "Butch" Wilmore surely didn't deliberation they'd inactive beryllium connected the International Space Station this agelong erstwhile they near Earth successful June. In fact, they initially expected to enactment for conscionable 8 days. And now, aft plans for their instrumentality were upended, they'll beryllium backmost connected Earth successful precocious March. But successful mid-January, astatine slightest 1 of them got to spell extracurricular -- and the different has plans to bash so. Williams teamed up with astronaut Nick Hague for a spacewalk connected Jan. 16, and some Williams and Wilmore are prepping for a spacewalk unneurotic connected Jan. 30

NASA astronaut Suni Williams is seen extracurricular the International Space Station during the Jan. 16, 2025, spacewalk.

NASA

On the Jan. 16 spacewalk, Williams and Hague replaced a complaint gyro assembly that helps support the predisposition of the orbital outpost, NASA said. It was the 4th spacewalk for Hague and the eighth for Williams. The astronauts besides installed patches to screen damaged areas of airy filters connected the Neutron prima Interior Composition Explorer X-ray telescope, replaced a reflector instrumentality connected 1 of the planetary docking adapters, and checked entree areas and connector tools that astronauts volition usage for aboriginal Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer maintenance.

On the Jan. 30 spacewalk, which volition statesman astatine 8 americium ET and past six-and-a-half hours, Williams and Wilmore volition region vigor antenna hardware and hunt for microbes extracurricular the orbital outpost.

The 2 stranded astronauts accidental that portion they miss their families, they've inactive got enactment to support them busy.

"Eventually we wanna spell home," said Williams successful a recent quality conference. "We near our families a small portion ago, but we person a batch to bash up present and we person to get that worldly done earlier we go."

February instrumentality is present March

Recently, NASA pushed backmost Williams and Wilmore's instrumentality to Earth from February to precocious March.

"NASA and SpaceX assessed assorted options for managing the adjacent crewed handover, including utilizing different Dragon spacecraft and manifest adjustments," according to a NASA property merchandise issued connected Dec. 17. "After cautious consideration, the squad determined that launching Crew-10 successful precocious March, pursuing completion of the caller Dragon spacecraft, was the champion enactment for gathering NASA's requirements and achieving abstraction presumption objectives for 2025.

The hold is truthful NASA and SpaceX teams tin implicit enactment connected the mission's caller Dragon spacecraft. That caller trade volition motorboat 4 unit members to the ISS -- commandant Anne McClain, commander, aviator Nichole Ayers, Japanese astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov. Once the caller unit is settled, Williams, Wilmore, NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov volition instrumentality to Earth.

But Williams and Wilmore aren't complaining astir their extended stay.

"I similar everything astir being up here," Williams said in aboriginal December. "Living successful abstraction is ace fun."

The astronauts are keeping busy, with Williams and Wilmore assisting the different ISS residents successful abstraction botany studies and different research, according to NASA's ISS blog. They person aided successful much than 60 technological studies successful their astir six months connected board, the Washington Post reports.

Here's what you request to cognize astir what the 2 astronauts are up to.

Who are the astronauts?

Wilmore, 61, and Williams, 58, are seasoned astronauts and are some naval officers and erstwhile trial pilots. Williams has been a NASA astronaut since 1998, and Wilmore since 2000. Both person plentifulness of acquisition successful space.

Williams is the erstwhile grounds holder for astir spacewalks by a pistillate (seven) and astir spacewalk clip for a pistillate (50 hours, 40 minutes), and successful 2007, she ran the archetypal marathon by immoderate idiosyncratic successful space.

In 2009, Wilmore piloted the Space Shuttle Atlantis connected its ngo to the ISS, and successful 2014, helium was portion of the ISS unit that utilized a 3D printer to manufacture a instrumentality -- a ratchet wrench -- successful space, the archetypal clip humans manufactured thing off-world.

What was their archetypal ngo successful space?

Wilmore, arsenic commander, and Williams, arsenic pilot, traveled to the ISS connected a 15-foot-wide, Boeing-made capsule called Starliner. They launched connected June 5 and docked with the ISS connected June 6. NASA hopes Starliner volition springiness the enactment a caller mode to get crews to and from the ISS, and the information that it's Boeing-made is different motion that NASA is starting to thin connected the backstage assemblage for its quality spaceflight options, The New York Times reported.

Wilmore and Williams' ISS ngo was expected to past a specified 8 days, during which they'd trial retired aspects of Starliner and spot however it operates with a quality unit successful space. But owed to complications with Starliner, the 2 astronauts are inactive up there.

What are the astronauts eating?

Food connected the ISS is simply a large focus, arsenic caller nutrient indispensable beryllium replenished each 3 months with deliveries from Earth. On Nov. 23, the unpiloted Progress 90 resupply spacecraft successfully docked to the ISS. But the latest nutrient transportation came with an unwanted smell.

"After opening the Progress spacecraft's hatch, the Roscosmos cosmonauts noticed an unexpected odor and observed tiny droplets, prompting the unit to adjacent the Poisk hatch to the remainder of the Russian segment," a NASA typical said in a connection posted to societal media.

"Space presumption aerial scrubbers and contaminant sensors monitored the station's ambiance pursuing the observation, and connected Sunday, formation controllers determined aerial prime wrong the abstraction presumption was astatine mean levels," NASA said. "There are nary concerns for the crew, and arsenic of Sunday afternoon, the unit is moving to unfastened the hatch betwixt Poisk and Progress portion each different abstraction presumption operations are proceeding arsenic planned."

NASA revealed that their paper includes cereal with powdered milk, pizza, shrimp cocktails, roast chickenhearted and tuna.

The odor that came on with the spacecraft isn't the lone food-related interest of late, with immoderate publications questioning the astronauts' bladed quality based connected caller photos. 

Dr. J.D. Polk, NASA main wellness and aesculapian officer, made an authoritative connection saying Williams and Wilmore are conscionable fine. "NASA and our partners person safely conducted agelong duration missions aboard the orbital laboratory for decades, studying the effects of abstraction connected the quality assemblage arsenic we hole for exploration farther into the star system," Polk said. "Crew wellness is regularly monitored by dedicated formation surgeons connected Earth, and they person an idiosyncratic fare and fittingness authorities to guarantee they stay steadfast passim their expeditions."

Williams said she weighs the aforesaid arsenic she did erstwhile she reached the abstraction station, successful a video interrogation conducted Nov. 12 connected the ISS.

What are the astronauts saying?

The astronauts person been affirmative astir their experience. At a live quality conference in September, Williams said that contempt knowing their ngo was scheduled to instrumentality lone 8 days, they'd some been "training for a fig of years" for it. They're afloat qualified to stay successful abstraction for an extended play of time, and to assistance aviator the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft that'll bring them location adjacent year.

"It's precise peaceful up here," Williams said connected Sept. 13, though she added that they miss their families backmost connected Earth.

The astronauts are moving connected research, attraction and information investigation during their extended stay.

"We are having a large clip present connected ISS," Williams said in a quality conference held from orbit successful July. "I'm not complaining. Butch isn't complaining that we're up present for a mates of other weeks."

Wilmore and Williams responding to media questions backmost successful March.

Houston Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers/Getty Images

How did they get stuck successful abstraction successful the archetypal place?

The Starliner was delayed successful May owed to a occupation with a valve successful the rocket. Then engineers had to hole a helium leak. That's each atrocious quality for Boeing. It's competing with SpaceX, which has been transporting astronauts to the ISS since 2020, making implicit 20 palmy trips to the abstraction station.

Starliner yet launched, atop an Atlas V rocket, connected June 5, but immoderate problems came on with it. NASA announced that three helium leaks were identified, 1 of which was known earlier flight, and 2 caller ones. In summation to the leaks, the unit had to troubleshoot failed power thrusters, though the trade was capable to successfully dock with the ISS. 

SpaceX has had failures too. A Falcon 9 rocket exploded connected the launchpad successful 2016. In July of this year, a Falcon 9 rocket experienced a liquid oxygen leak and deployed its satellites successful the incorrect orbit, The New York Times reported. And a Falcon 9 rocket successful precocious August mislaid a first-stage booster erstwhile it toppled implicit into the Atlantic Ocean and caught fire.

But that said, SpaceX has much than 300 palmy Falcon 9 flights to its credit. 

Stuck successful space: A timeline

• May: Starliner motorboat delayed owed to a occupation with a valve successful the rocket, and past a helium leak.
• June 5: Starliner launches with Williams and Wilmore connected board.
• June 6: Starliner docks with ISS contempt dealing with 3 helium leaks and failed power thrusters.
• Sept. 6: Starliner departs ISS and lands successful New Mexico, leaving Williams and Wilmore behind.
• Sept. 28: SpaceX Crew-9 ngo launches with Hague and Gorbunov connected a Dragon spacecraft.
• Sept. 29: SpaceX Dragon docks with ISS.
• Dec. 17: NASA announces the motorboat of 4 unit members to the ISS volition beryllium delayed from February to precocious March.
• March 2025 onward: SpaceX Dragon spacecraft volition instrumentality to Earth with Williams, Wilmore, Hague and Gorbunov.