SpaceX, NASA Gear up for Crew-9’s homecoming with Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore on March 18

NASA and Elon Musk-owned SpaceX are preparing for the return of the Crew-9 mission from the International Space Station (ISS), targeting an earlier-than-expected evening touchdown on Tuesday, March 18, 2025.

After evaluating weather conditions off Florida’s coast on Sunday, mission managers decided to aim for an earlier return than originally planned, with favourable conditions expected.

The new timing still allows the astronauts to complete their handover duties aboard the ISS and offers a bit of flexibility in case weather conditions worsen later in the week.

The Crew-9 astronauts—NASA’s Nick Hague, Suni Williams, and Butch Wilmore, along with Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov—have spent several months conducting important research on the ISS. As such, their return will include bringing back valuable scientific data gathered during their mission.

Williams and Wilmore have been stranded on the ISS for nine months due to technical issues and several unsuccessful attempts to bring them back.