NASA Astronauts Williams, Wilmore Set for March Return
Crew 10 to Replace Williams and Wilmore at ISS on March 12, with Their Return Date Dependent on Weather Conditions.
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Crew 10 will board a Dragon spacecraft on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA Kennedy on March 12.
The US-based space agency added, “The crew is targeted to launch at 7:48 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, March 12, aboard a Dragon spacecraft on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA Kennedy.”
Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore's return date will also depend on the weather conditions.
They flew to the International Space Station's Boeing Starliner on June 5 last year. However, technical issues, including helium leaks and thruster malfunctions, meant that the Starliner was unsafe for their return.
SpaceX developed its Crew Dragon capsule with roughly $3 billion in funding from NASA's Commercial Crew Program.
"Human spaceflight is full of unexpected challenges. Our operational flexibility is enabled by the tremendous partnership between NASA and SpaceX and the agility SpaceX continues to demonstrate to safely meet the agency's emerging needs," said Steve Stich, manager of NASA's Commercial Crew Program.
