CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Stuck in space no more, NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams returned to Earth on Tuesday, hitching a different ride home to close out a saga that began with a bungled test flight more than nine months ago.
In this image provided by NASA, a SpaceX capsule splashes down in the Gulf of Mexico, Tuesday, March 18, 2025, as it lands off the coast of Florida with NASA astronauts Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore and Nick Hague, and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov. (Keegan Barber/NASA via AP)
This image taken from video released by SpaceX shows dolphins swimming near a SpaceX capsule, Tuesday, March 18, 2025, after landing off the coast of Florida with NASA astronauts Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore and Nick Hague, and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov. (SpaceX via AP)
FILE - NASA astronauts Suni Williams, left, and Butch Wilmore stand together for a photo enroute to the launch pad at Space Launch Complex 41 Wednesday, June 5, 2024, in Cape Canaveral, Fla., for their liftoff on a Boeing Starliner capsule to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara, File)
This image taken from video released by SpaceX shows, from left, NASA's Butch Wilmore, Russia’s Alexander Gorbunov, NASA’s Nick Hague, and NASA's Suni Williams wait to exit the SpaceX capsule after splashing down, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (SpaceX via AP)
This image taken from video provided by SpaceX shows NASA's Suni Williams being helped after exiting the SpaceX capsule, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (SpaceX via AP)
Indians performs rituals for the safe return of American astronaut of Indian origin Sunita Williams from the International Space Station (ISS), in Ahmedabad, India, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)
This image taken from video provided by SpaceX shows NASA's Butch Wilmore being helped after exiting the SpaceX capsule, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (SpaceX via AP)
In this image provided by NASA, a SpaceX capsule splashes down in the Gulf of Mexico, Tuesday, March 18, 2025, as it lands off the coast of Florida with NASA astronauts Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore and Nick Hague, and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov. (Keegan Barber/NASA via AP)
This image taken from video released by SpaceX shows dolphins swimming near a SpaceX capsule, Tuesday, March 18, 2025, after landing off the coast of Florida with NASA astronauts Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore and Nick Hague, and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov. (SpaceX via AP)
FILE - NASA astronauts Suni Williams, left, and Butch Wilmore stand together for a photo enroute to the launch pad at Space Launch Complex 41 Wednesday, June 5, 2024, in Cape Canaveral, Fla., for their liftoff on a Boeing Starliner capsule to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara, File)
This image taken from video released by SpaceX shows, from left, NASA's Butch Wilmore, Russia’s Alexander Gorbunov, NASA’s Nick Hague, and NASA's Suni Williams wait to exit the SpaceX capsule after splashing down, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (SpaceX via AP)
This image taken from video provided by SpaceX shows NASA's Suni Williams being helped after exiting the SpaceX capsule, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (SpaceX via AP)
This image taken from video provided by SpaceX shows NASA's Butch Wilmore being helped after exiting the SpaceX capsule, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (SpaceX via AP)
Indians performs rituals for the safe return of American astronaut of Indian origin Sunita Williams from the International Space Station (ISS), in Ahmedabad, India, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)
