Trump Requests Elon Musk’s Help in Retrieving NASA Astronauts from the International Space Station

January 29, 2025 TruthUSA

Astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore have been stationed at the International Space Station (ISS) since June of the previous year.

On January 28, President Donald Trump announced that he has reached out to billionaire entrepreneur and SpaceX founder Elon Musk to assist in the return of two NASA astronauts who have been aboard the International Space Station (ISS) for several months.

NASA engaged Musk’s SpaceX in August 2024 to facilitate the return of the astronauts via a Crew Dragon spacecraft. This spacecraft is currently docked at the ISS, having arrived there during NASA’s Crew-9 astronaut rotation mission in September 2024, which had empty seats for the two astronauts. Following some delays, the return mission was planned for late March.

In a statement made on the social media platform X, Musk confirmed that Trump has requested his space technology company to bring the two astronauts back home as soon as possible.

“We will do so,” Musk stated.

Trump mentioned in a Truth Social post on Tuesday: “I have just asked Elon Musk and @SpaceX to ‘go get’ the 2 brave astronauts who have been virtually abandoned in space by the Biden Administration.”

“They have been on the @Space Station for many months. Elon will soon be on his way. Hopefully, all will be safe. Good luck Elon!!!”

Trump was referring to astronauts Sunita Williams, 59, and Butch Wilmore, 61, who were launched into space on June 5, 2024, for station research, maintenance, system testing, and data analysis.

Originally, the mission was expected to last just over a week or two but was subsequently extended after the Boeing Starliner capsule they arrived in was assessed as unfit for returning them to Earth. NASA decided to return the Starliner spacecraft empty due to the identification of helium leaks and concerns regarding the craft’s control thrusters.

Williams and Wilmore were scheduled to return to Earth in February during a handover with astronaut Nick Hague and cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, both of whom arrived at the ISS in September 2024.

However, that mission was postponed until late March after SpaceX and NASA indicated they needed additional time to finalize preparations for a new Crew Dragon capsule that was set to arrive at the company’s facility in Florida in early January.

“The agency’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission with NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov will bring them back to Earth following the arrival of Crew-10 at the orbital laboratory,” NASA stated in December.

Despite the unplanned extension to their mission, NASA has assured that both Williams and Wilmore are in good health, and their time in orbit is within acceptable limits.

“All NASA astronauts aboard the ISS undergo regular medical evaluations, have dedicated flight surgeons monitoring their health, and are in good condition,” the agency reiterated in a statement to media in November last year.

The Epoch Times has reached out to a NASA representative for further comments.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Source link