Two astronauts who had been alleged to be in area proper now say they're nonetheless glad to be a part of the floor workforce.
Until not too long ago, NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Stephanie Wilson had been assigned to SpaceX‘s Crew-9 mission. But their Crew Dragon spacecraft left with out them on Saturday (Sept. 28) after their seats needed to be reassigned in August to deliver residence two different NASA astronauts at the moment residing on the International Space Station (ISS).
“I think it was hard not to watch that rocket lift off without thinking, ‘That's my rocket and that's my crew,'” Cardman stated throughout the launch broadcast on NASA+, previously NASA Television, of the Crew-9 astronauts who did go away Earth: NASA's Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov of the Russian area company Roscosmos.
“It makes me feel very connected to this mission,” Cardman added.
Wilson, talking throughout the similar broadcast, emphasised that astronauts are at all times working for the similar workforce regardless of if they're in area or on the floor. “We, of course, want to be together,” she stated of Crew-9. “We have built friendship and camaraderie … but I'm very excited for them [Hague and Gorbunov], looking forward to hearing their stories from space.”
Related: SpaceX's Crew-9 Dragon spacecraft arrives at ISS to assist deliver Starliner astronauts residence (video)
Crew Dragon went to area with two mass simulators in Cardman's and Wilson's former seats. When Crew-9 wraps up in February 2025, NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams will occupy these spots. Williams and Wilson had been left with out their anticipated experience residence after their Boeing Starliner spacecraft returned to Earth autonomously on Sept. 7.
Starliner launched to area with out main incident, however docking with the ISS on June 6 was problematic. Issues with the propulsion system on Starliner delayed the spacecraft's arrival to the ISS throughout its first-ever mission with astronauts. Two months of troubleshooting adopted, however NASA stated the threat remained too excessive to deliver Starliner residence with the crew. So Crew-9 was modified to accommodate Williams and Wilmore on the return journey.
Cardman praised NASA for taking the time to “prioritize the safety of the crew,” although Starliner's uncrewed return to Earth was deemed protected sufficient, after the reality, to have introduced residence the NASA pair. As for Williams' and Wilmore's surprising ISS extension from a number of days to eight months: “Butch and Suni are professionals who are well prepared. They are previous flyers who have spent time on the space station before, so they're doing great work on board.”
Wilson and Cardman stay eligible for future NASA spaceflights.
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