SpaceX launch to help stranded astronauts home postponed

A Nasa-SpaceX mission that aimed to clear the way for two stranded astronauts to get back to earth has been postponed.

The Falcon 9 launch from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station was put back due to a hydraulic ground issue. There is another possible launch opportunity on Thursday.

The rocket aimed to fly four new crew members to the International Space Station (ISS) and pave the way for the return of Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore.

The two NASA astronauts flew to space in June but were not able to return on a Boeing spacecraft after it was deemed unsafe. The pair would be able to return to earth within days of the SpaceX mission reaching the ISS.

The Nasa astronauts left earth on 5 June 2024 for an eight-day mission and have been stuck at the ISS for more than nine months, instead helping ongoing missions at the station with maintenance and experiments.

The Wednesday launch would have made it possible for them to return to earth as early as Sunday.

SpaceX said the issue that forced the launch to scrub related to the hydraulics on one of the clamp arms, which engineers were trying to fix. There were concerns the arm would not have been able to open fully during launch.

There is another possible launch window on Thursday but SpaceX has yet to announce whether the equipment will be fixed by that time.

Ms Williams, 58, and Mr Wilmore, 61, have taken their peculiar situation in stride, saying in a news conference from the ISS in September that they have been trained to “expect the unexpected”.

“This is my happy place,” Ms Williams said at the time, though admitting she missed her family and two dogs.

Mr Wilmore noted the issues with the Starliner spacecraft they arrived on made them not “comfortable” to fly back home on.

He added, however, that 90% of their training was “preparing for the unexpected”.

He said they would stay up there for “eight months, nine months, 10 months” if necessary.

Ms Williams said being in space makes her think more about planet Earth.

“It opens up the door to making you think a bit differently,” she explained. “It’s the one planet we have and we should be taking care of it.”