Sunita Williams, Barry Wilmore’s extended stay in space

The Boeing Starliner launched from the International Space Station in June alongside veteran NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore. The mission was supposed to last eight days, but a technical error delayed the astronauts’ return and extended the mission by another eight months.

The Boeing Starliner capsule experienced propulsion problems, including a helium leak that led to the aborted return. The spacecraft’s service module reported several tiny helium leaks, making transport unsafe. Helium is critical to maintaining the spacecraft’s structural integrity and maneuverability. In addition to helium leaks, the spacecraft also found problems in its engines and valves.

The mission’s goal was to demonstrate the Boeing Starliner’s ability to carry people to the ISS. Boeing needed to tap into the space occupied by Elon Musk’s SpaceX to provide crew transportation services to NASA.

The transport of Ms. Williams and Mr. Bilmore was Starliner’s first crewed flight.

SpaceX to the rescue

The NASA SpaceX spacecraft with Crew 9 members NASA astronaut Nick Hague (commander) and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov (mission specialist) docked at the International Space Station (ISS) last month to bring back Ms. Williams and Mr. Wilmore.

Crew 9 members will have two vacant spots for NASA astronauts Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams, which will be filled when the spacecraft returns next year.

The astronauts will now return home in February next year.

Interestingly, after weeks of extensive testing, the Starliner returned to Earth without a crew. Starliner’s return delayed Crew-9’s launch from mid-August to September because NASA wanted more time to assess Starliner’s reliability.

Hague and Gorbunov will stay in space for five months before returning home.

Survival in space

Williams and Bilmore’s extended stay raised concerns about their survival, particularly regarding food and oxygen supplies.

NASA assured that there was no immediate danger to the astronauts and that the ISS had sufficient supplies to support the crew for the additional time.

“The space station is well equipped with everything the crew needs, including food, water, clothing and oxygen,” NASA said. The agency stressed that regular resupply missions will ensure astronauts’ needs are met, citing the regular arrival of cargo spacecraft carrying food, fuel and supplies.

The space station announced that two spacecraft – one carrying “8,200 pounds of food, fuel and supplies” and one carrying “three tons of cargo” – recently arrived at the ISS.

Living in space for extended periods of time requires unique precautions. On the ISS, thanks to weightlessness, astronauts can sleep anywhere – on the floor, on the ceiling or on the walls. They use sleeping stations, similar to telephone booths, with sleeping bags and pillows attached to the floor, wall or ceiling. Astronauts can also make video calls, audio calls or send emails through NASA.

Aboard the ISS, Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore also have access to the vegetable production system (vegetable garden), which allows them to grow fresh produce and even flowers in space. During their extended stay, the duo experimented with different techniques to improve plant growth in space.