Sunita and Butch return: Here's what astronauts did during extended stay

Barry 'Butch' Wilmore and Sunita 'Suni' Williams were originally scheduled for an eight-day mission, but the Nasa astronauts remained aboard the International Space Station for nearly nine months

Nasa’s Crew-10 mission, launched in collaboration with Elon Musk's SpaceX, is ready to bring back astronauts Sunita ‘Suni’ Williams and Barry ‘Butch’ Wilmore after nine months on the International Space Station (ISS). Both astronauts have said that they tried to make the most of every moment they were in space. 

So, how did the Nasa astronauts spend their time orbiting 400 km above Earth?

 

During their time aboard the ISS, Suni, 59, and Butch, 62, contributed to ongoing missions by performing maintenance, conducting experiments, and carrying out spacewalks.

 

According to Nasa’s official website, Williams and Wilmore investigated techniques to support plant growth in microgravity. They worked on the Plant Water Management (PWM) system, exploring how fluid physics like surface tension and hydroponics can be utilised to effectively water and nourish plants in space. This research is crucial for future long-duration missions that aim to cultivate food aboard spacecraft, says Nasa.  Also read: Sunita Williams return LIVE updates: People of India praying for your good health, says PM Modi

 

The astronauts also maintained the Vegetable Production System, known as ‘Veggie’, which is used to grow fresh produce on the ISS. Wilmore installed a light meter inside the Veggie facility to obtain light measurements and adjust settings, ensuring optimal conditions for plant growth.

 

Williams assumed command of ‘Expedition 72’, leading station operations and overseeing crew activities. Her leadership ensured the smooth functioning of the station during crew transitions and ongoing missions.

 

Both astronauts also participated in spacewalks to perform maintenance tasks on the station's exterior. Notably, Williams surpassed the previous record for total spacewalking time by a female astronaut, logging 62 hours and 6 minutes, according to media reports.

 

During their stay at ISS, they also celebrated Christmans and even voted in last year's US elections. According to a BBC report, Butch and Suni and the two other Americans who were on board with them, Don Pettit and Nick Hague, cast their vote with the help of Nasa. To enable their voting, the Mission Control Center in Houston securely emailed encrypted ballots to the ISS. The astronauts completed them and transmitted them via satellite to a ground terminal in New Mexico. From there, the ballots were relayed through landlines to Mission Control, which electronically forwarded them to their county clerks for official filing, the report said.

 

Initially planned to return on Boeing’s Starliner after an eight-day mission, technical failures forced Nasa to extend their stay for about nine months, keeping them on the ISS for continued research and maintenance. After months of planning and coordination, Nasa arranged for Wilmore and Williams’ their way home in a SpaceX Dragon capsule. They departed this morning from the ISS, Nasa said sharing a video of the spacecraft detaching from the space station.