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SpaceX President and COO Gwynne Shotwell shared that her company is ready to work with NASA to return astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams on the Crew Dragon spacecraft. Wilmore and Williams' fate was sealed by NASA earlier today after an agency review determined that the risk of returning them on Boeing's Starliner was too high. As a result, NASA will use SpaceX's Crew Dragon to return the astronauts on the Crew-9 mission, currently scheduled to launch in late September.
SpaceX Ready to Give NASA Maximum Support, Shotwell Says
Before the Crew 9 Dragon can take off and dock with the ISS, the docking port must be ready to receive the spacecraft. Currently, the U.S. section of the International Space Station (ISS) can accommodate two crewed spacecraft, and along with Starliner, SpaceX's Dragon for the Crew-8 mission is also docked with the ISS.
Thus, to accommodate Crew-9 Dragon, Starliner must undock from the ISS, and this strict requirement was a deciding factor in NASA's decision today, since otherwise Starliner would have spent more than six months on the station, and SpaceX's Crew-8 would have had to undock first.
In his post on X after Today's announcementSpaceX's Shotwell shared that “SpaceX is ready to support NASA in any way possible.” Before returning Wilmore and Williams to Earth on the Dragon spacecraft, SpaceX will work with NASA to decide which astronauts will not fly to the ISS as part of Crew-9, as the original mission roster included four astronauts. The company will then ensure that Dragon seats do not change the mission profile due to the updated crew list.
Another change to the Crew-9 manifest that today’s decision necessitates is the spacesuits the astronauts will use to return to Earth. Because they are different spacecraft, SpaceX’s Dragon and Boeing’s Starliner use separate crew suits. These suits are responsible for regulating the crew’s temperature and keeping them safe in the event of cabin depressurization due to an anomaly.
SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacesuits are customized to fit each astronaut, and during a press conference earlier today, NASA officials said they would be sending an extra suit to the ISS on Crew 9. They also said a spare suit was already on the station, and the astronauts had successfully tested it to ensure it met requirements.
August and September are busy months for SpaceX's crewed missions. Following the launch of Crew-9, the firm will work with NASA to bring the Crew-8 mission back to Earth. Before that, SpaceX will launch a privately funded human space mission under the Polaris program under billionaire Jared Issacman next week. The Polaris Dawn mission will be the first of its kind for SpaceX, as it will take Dragon to its highest altitude for a spacewalk.