
Two astronauts stranded at the International Space Station will return aboard a SpaceX vehicle in February, NASA officials announced yesterday. The pair—Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore—arrived aboard a Boeing Starliner in June for an eight-day mission but experienced a helium leak and malfunctioning thrusters endangering their return trip. The Starliner capsule will attempt an uncrewed return in September via autopilot.
The ISS is roughly the size of a five-bedroom house and can accommodate six crew plus visitors (nine are currently aboard the facility). See an overview here.
Both SpaceX and Boeing were awarded funding under a 2014 NASA award aimed at developing private transportation to the ISS. SpaceX has flown nine crewed NASA flights to the ISS since 2020, while Boeing has yet to complete a successful mission despite reportedly going $1.5B over budget.
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