Top Photo: Suni Williams exits capsule after splashdown. Photo Credit: NASA
Two NASA astronauts have returned to Earth after spending 286 days in space—278 days longer than they planned on being gone!
The astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, left for a test flight last June. They arrived to the International Space Station (ISS) on June 6, 2024. While both Williams and Wilmore had spent time in the orbiting lab before, they traveled 121 million miles on this trip, circling Earth 4,576 times!
Two other astronauts, Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov, arrived to the space station in September. The ISS is a laboratory that ORBITS Earth approximately 250 miles away from our planet’s surface and has been continuously occupied since November 2000.
Hague, Williams and Wilmore completed more than 900 hours of research during their time in space. They conducted more than 150 unique experiments, studying plant growth and completing a spacewalk to collect samples from the station’s exterior.
After completing more than 62 hours over nine spacewalks, Williams even set a record on this trip: the most time spent spacewalking over a career among female astronauts.
Hours after departing the space station on March 18, Wilmore, Williams, Gorbunov and Hague splashed down in the ocean off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida.
“On behalf of SpaceX, welcome home,” radioed SpaceX Mission Control in California.
“What a ride,” replied Hague. “I see a capsule full of grins ear to ear.”
Within an hour of splashing down, they were out of their capsule, smiling as they passed by cameras, and being carried away for routine medical exams. Wilmore and Williams are now in the process of recovering physically. Spending long periods of time away from Earth can change an astronaut’s body a number of ways, affecting their muscles, brains and even gut bacteria.
Despite the challenges, Williams and Wilmore remained calm during their prolonged time away and said they supported NASA’s decisions. The astronauts are retired Navy captains, and are accustomed to spending time away from home. However, they both said they were happy to return home to their families.
Iceberg Exposes Exciting Sea Life!
Antarctica—In mid-January, an enormous iceberg almost the size of Tucson broke off from the George VI Ice Shelf at the bottom of the world. As this massive chunk of ice (about 209 square miles) floated away, a team of scientists were eager to discover what secrets the newly exposed seabed revealed.
The expedition team arrived Jan. 25 aboard the research vessel Falkor (too) of the Schmidt Ocean Institute. The team would study the geology, OCEANOGRAPHY and sea life that was once kept in total darkness by an ice sheet 500-feet thick!
Using the ROV (remotely operated vehicle) SuBastian, scientists discovered vibrant ecosystems thriving on the frigid ocean bottom. This photo shows a large sponge surrounded by anenomes and other sea creatures. “We didn’t expect to find such a beautiful, thriving ecosystem,” explained expedition co-chief Dr. Patricia Esquete from Portugal. “Based on the size of the animals, the communities we observed have been there for decades, maybe even hundreds of years!”
For eight days, the team studied the different ecosystems, some as deep as 4,300 feet. The ROV took breathtaking photos of the communities and swimming creatures like octopus and giant jellies. Researchers also nabbed samples. Some of these animals may be new species!
Biologists think nutrient-rich currents could be feeding these thriving communities.
