NASA announces it will reattempt the launch on Friday to bring astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams back to Earth.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX has postponed a mission to replace two astronauts currently stranded on the International Space Station (ISS) due to a last-minute technical issue.
The delay of Wednesday’s launch means NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams will have to wait at least two more days before they can begin their journey back to Earth.
Wilmore and Williams arrived at the ISS in June for a mission initially planned to last no more than 10 days. However, their stay was extended after their Boeing Starliner spacecraft experienced propulsion problems.
The two astronauts are set to return to Earth aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft currently docked at the ISS, once a team of American, Japanese, and Russian astronauts arrives to take their place.
NASA stated that Wednesday’s launch at the Kennedy Space Center was canceled due to an issue with the hydraulic system of a ground support clamp arm for the Falcon 9 rocket.
The space agency is working to resolve the hydraulic system problem and plans to reattempt the launch on Friday.
The Crew-10 team includes NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, Japan’s Takuya Onishi, and Russia’s Kirill Peskov.
If the mission proceeds as planned on Friday, Wilmore and Williams could depart the ISS by March 19, according to NASA.
Earlier this month, during a call with reporters, Williams expressed her eagerness to reunite with her family.
“It’s been a roller coaster for them, probably a bit more so than for us,” Williams said. “We’re here, we have a mission—we’re just doing what we do every day, and every day is interesting because we’re up in space, and it’s a lot of fun.”
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