The White House on Tuesday highlighted the efforts of US President Donald Trump in prioritizing the safe return of NASA Crew-9 astronauts—Sunita Williams, Nick Hague, Butch Wilmore, and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov—who had been stranded in space for nearly nine months. Their successful return was credited to the collaboration between SpaceX, NASA, and Elon Musk.
The White House issued a statement saying:
“PROMISE MADE, PROMISE KEPT: President Trump pledged to rescue the astronauts stranded in space for nine months. Today, they safely splashed down in the Gulf of America, thanks to Elon Musk, SpaceX, and NASA!”
Elon Musk, the CEO of SpaceX, also expressed his appreciation, congratulating both NASA and SpaceX teams for their success:
“Congratulations to the SpaceX and NASA teams for another safe astronaut return! Thank you to Donald Trump for prioritizing this mission!”
NASA Crew-9’s Return to Earth
The Crew-9 astronauts returned to Earth aboard SpaceX’s Dragon capsule, landing in the Gulf of America off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, marking the successful conclusion of their nine-month mission. After disembarking from the capsule on stretchers—an industry-standard precaution for astronauts returning from long-duration space missions—NASA and SpaceX teams worked together to ensure their safe recovery.
NASA acting Administrator Janet Petro expressed her gratitude for the astronauts’ safe return:
“We are thrilled to have Suni, Butch, Nick, and Aleksandr home after their months-long mission conducting vital science, technology demonstrations, and maintenance aboard the International Space Station.”
President Trump’s administration directed NASA and SpaceX to fast-track the mission, bringing the crew home a month earlier than initially scheduled. According to Petro:
“Through preparation, ingenuity, and dedication, we achieve great things together for the benefit of humanity, pushing the boundaries of what is possible from low Earth orbit to the Moon and Mars.”
Record-Breaking Spacewalks and Contributions to Science
During their mission, Sunita Williams made history by becoming the female astronaut with the most total spacewalk time—62 hours and 6 minutes—ranking fourth on the all-time spacewalk duration list. The astronauts also contributed significantly to scientific research, with over 150 experiments conducted, ranging from studies on plant growth to stem cell technology and the survival of microorganisms in space.
Williams and Wilmore traveled a combined total of 121,347,491 miles, completing 4,576 orbits. Hague and Gorbunov traveled 72,553,920 miles and completed 2,736 orbits.
The Future of Space Exploration
Crew-9’s return marks another milestone in NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, which aims to provide safe and reliable transportation to the International Space Station (ISS) and low Earth orbit. This program supports broader goals of human exploration of the Moon and Mars.
The Crew-9 mission also set the stage for the upcoming NASA SpaceX Crew-10 mission, which began its own journey to the ISS on March 16, 2025.