SpaceX Mission to Rescue two Astronauts Stranded Since June 2024 is Postponed

Elon Musk and SpaceX are working to return U.S. astronauts Barry "Butch" Wilmore and Suni Williams, who have been in space far longer than NASA initially planned, to Earth. 

However, the launch was called off about 30 minutes before liftoff due to a hydraulic ground issue.

Musk informed FOX Business' Larry Kudlow earlier this week that his aerospace company plans to bring them back in a few weeks.

In partnership with NASA, SpaceX is set to launch its Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday evening for the Crew-10 Mission, which is headed to the International Space Station orbiting about 250 miles above Earth.

The mission, which will transport a four-person crew to replace NASA’s Crew-9 currently aboard the ISS, is expected to mark the long-awaited return of Wilmore and Williams.

The two astronauts have been aboard the International Space Station for over nine months, having arrived on June 6 of last year. NASA had initially expected Wilmore and Williams' stay at the ISS to last only about a week.

Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft had initially transported the two astronauts from Earth to the ISS, but it returned to Earth unmanned in September.

NASA stated back in August that the spacecraft would come back without Wilmore and Williams as the agency reasoned an unmanned return would permit NASA and Boeing "to gather additional testing data on Starliner during its upcoming flight home" and reduce risk to the crew. This was based on issues that came up during docking with the ISS in June relating to "helium leaks" and "issues with the spacecraft's reaction control thrusters."

Both astronauts joined the Expedition 71/72 crews, with NASA saying back then the plan was to bring them back to Earth alongside two members of SpaceX Crew-9 in early 2025.

In late September, NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, both Crew-9 members, arrived at the ISS.

According to NASA, Hague, Wilmore, and Williams have together conducted over 900 hours of research on the ISS.

If the SpaceX Crew-10 launch proceeds as planned on Wednesday evening, the crew is expected to reach the ISS the following morning, according to NASA.

"Crew-10 is going to arrive in just a few days," Hague said last week from the ISS. "We'll hand the baton to Crew-10, and then we’ll return to Earth after a successful long-duration mission aboard the space station."

In a recent blog post, NASA mentioned there will be a "handover period" with the SpaceX Crew-10 before Wilmore, Williams, Hague, and Gorbunov leave the ISS. Reports indicate their return to Earth could happen as early as Sunday.

"Weather officials predict more than a 95% chance of favorable weather conditions at Launch Complex 39A for the liftoff of @SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft carrying #Crew10 to the @Space_Station," the Kennedy Space Center posted Wednesday on X.

SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, standing nearly 27 feet tall, was designed to accommodate up to seven passengers.