An astronaut stranded in space has revealed how being up there for so long is starting to impact her body.
NASA astronauts Barry ‘Butch’ Wilmore and Sunita ‘Suni’ Williams launched into space in June 2023 for a mission that was originally planned to last just eight days.
However, technical problems with their spacecraft prevented their return, and they’ve now been in space for almost eight months.
Initially, they were expected to return in April 2024, but NASA has now announced that their rescue mission will be moved up to March 19.
This will bring their total time in space to 286 days.
Struggling to Remember How to Walk
Speaking to students at her old high school, Williams admitted she’s been in space for so long that she’s having trouble remembering what it feels like to walk.
“I’ve been up here long enough right now that I’ve been trying to remember what it’s like to walk,” she said.
Since there’s no gravity in space, astronauts don’t need to walk, sit, or lie down like they do on Earth. Instead, they simply float in their environment.
“I haven’t walked. I haven’t sat down. I haven’t laid down. You don’t have to. You can just close your eyes and float where you are right here.”
NASA’s New Rescue Plan
Originally, the astronauts were set to return using Boeing’s Starliner capsule, but due to ongoing technical issues, NASA has decided to use SpaceX’s Endurance ship instead.
The Crew-10 rotation ship, which was meant to bring them back, faced battery-related technical problems with SpaceX’s C213 Dragon.
As a result, NASA and SpaceX worked together to resolve the issue and finalized plans to bring Wilmore and Williams home on March 19.
The Extended Stay Was a Shock
Williams admitted that the extended mission caught her by surprise.
While they were aware that they might have to stay longer than planned, they initially expected it to be just a month or so.
“We knew that it would be probably a month or so, honestly. But the extended stay was just a little bit different.”
Political Attention on the Rescue
The delay in their return has also gained political attention, with newly elected President Donald Trump and Elon Musk publicly discussing the rescue mission on social media.
The rising concerns have likely influenced NASA’s decision to prioritize their return sooner rather than later.
Coping with the Long Separation From Family
Although Williams enjoys being in space, she acknowledged that being away from her loved ones for so long is challenging.
“My mother’s getting a little bit older, so in that regard, I just try to stay in touch with them and those guys as much as possible.”
Despite the distance, she talks to her mom practically every day to check in and see how she’s doing.
“It’s just a little bit different relationship than we had potentially planned on for the last couple of months. But we’re managing.”
When Will They Return?
The astronauts, who were only meant to be in space for a short time, have now spent several months aboard the International Space Station.
With the revised rescue plan, Wilmore and Williams are now scheduled to return to Earth on March 19.
Hopefully, this new timeline holds, and they’ll finally be brought back home soon.