Splashdown

Some good news, for a change.  The two NASA astronauts, who have been on the International Space Station since last summer after equipment issues turned an expected eight day stay into nine months, returned to earth safely on Tuesday, March 18th. There was even a pod of dolphins which greeted their space capsule.

Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore are 59 and 62, respectively.  Which is older than typical astronauts, and hopefully they won't  suffer any permanent health damage from their time in space. They are both married, and Wilmore has two teenage daughters.  I imagine it would be like any military family, reuniting after a long deployment. An adjustment to make, even though they would be overjoyed to be back together again.

I said prayers of thanksgiving because there were so many things that could have gone wrong. The journey in the space capsule to return to earth took 17 hours. I have never taken space travel for granted, and can't imagine what it would have been like to be up there for nine months. I have borderline claustrophobia, and I'm afraid I would have gone nuts or killed somebody if I were confined in a space not much bigger than a trailer house bathroom with three other people for that long. Plus, there is the cold dark emptiness of space to contend with.

Not everyone would feel that way. One of my sisters said she wished Grandma could have seen this.  Our maternal grandmother was always interested in space travel, and followed closely the space missions of NASA.

Here is a good summary from  NPR:

Two NASA astronauts return to Earth after an unexpectedly long mission : NPR

"Two NASA astronauts who've been on the International Space Station since last summer after their weeklong assignment turned into a nine-month saga are back on Earth.A SpaceX Dragon capsule carrying Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore splashed down off the Gulf coast of Florida shortly before 6 p.m. EDT Tuesday. The spacecraft had undocked from the ISS at 1:05 a.m. EDT Monday morning.The pair returned home alongside fellow NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov."

"Last June, a Boeing spacecraft launched with Williams and Wilmore on board for what was anticipated to be an eight-day mission, but problems with the aerospace company's capsule meant that the pair were left on the ISS and ultimately incorporated into the space station's regular crew."

"Tuesday's splashdown capped a lengthy space odyssey for Williams and Wilmore, whose troubled voyage became mired in politics and raised questions about Boeing's ability to carry out missions for NASA."

"On June 5, Williams and Wilmore rocketed into the cosmos aboard the new Boeing Starliner spacecraft. The flight was part of NASA's commercial crew program, which contracts with private companies to ferry astronauts and cargo to and from the International Space Station. SpaceX, the other company hired through the program, has been successfully flying missions for NASA for years."

"The early summer launch was Starliner's first trip with a human crew on board. The capsule made it to the ISS, but not before encountering a number of issues, including multiple helium leaks and the malfunctioning of some of its thrusters."

"NASA decided that, rather than risk flying Williams and Wilmore back on a questionable craft, they would return the beleaguered Starliner to Earth without a crew."

"That meant leaving Williams and Wilmore behind on the ISS, where they would be incorporated into the space station's regular crew rotation until their replacements arrived months later, NASA announced."

"That occurred early Sunday morning, when two NASA astronauts, a Japanese astronaut and a Russian cosmonaut who had docked on the ISS floated through a hatch to greet their colleagues."

"Williams' and Wilmore's expedition — which spanned two presidential administrations — has been caught up in politics. Shortly after taking office in January, President Trump said he asked his close political adviser and SpaceX founder Elon Musk to "go get" Williams and Wilmore, whom Trump said had been "virtually abandoned in space by the Biden Administration."

"In fact, the astronauts' ride back to Earth had been docked on the ISS since September. The SpaceX Dragon capsule that flew the pair home on Tuesday arrived at the space station in the fall with two empty seats for the duo's return trip. NASA said it had decided to integrate Williams and Wilmore into the space station crew for technical and budgetary reasons, and during their time on the station the pair has been conducting experiments and spacewalks."

"Musk said in February that he had made an offer to the Biden administration "months ago" for SpaceX to bring the astronauts home early, but that the administration "refused" and delayed the pair's return for "political reasons."  Two former NASA officials under the Biden administration, including former NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, said they were unaware of any such offer.Trump, in a post on his social media site on Monday, thanked NASA acting Administrator Janet Petro and space agency staff for coordinating Williams' and Wilmore's return and accused the Biden administration of being "incapable" of bringing the pair home."