Stranded astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore are finally returning to earth aboard an Elon Musk-backed SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft. The heroic homecoming mission has become one of the most talked-about events these days, as the astronauts are returning from the ISS (International Space Station) after more than nine months, while the original plan was to stay only for about nine days.
A SpaceX rocket carrying four astronauts, undocked from the ISS early this morning around 1:05 a.m. ET (Eastern Time), and is expected to splash down near the coast of Florida just before 6 p.m. ET today. Once the spacecraft splashes down in the ocean, it will be hauled to the coast by a SpaceX rescue ship, allowing the astronauts to take their first steps on Earth after their months-long stay in space.
The Wait Is Over
The duo arrived at the ISS on June 6, 2024, aboard a Boeing (BA) Starliner to test the spacecraft’s capabilities for shuttling astronauts between the Earth and the ISS. However, a glitch in the Starliner’s thrusters made the return flight risky, forcing the astronauts to stay back longer than planned. Notably, both Williams and Wilmore have taken their extended stay at the ISS in the right spirit. Despite occasional challenges, they have maintained a positive attitude and helped in the routine operations and research work at the ISS during their time there.
The other two astronauts returning with Williams and Wilmore are NASA’s Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov. The two arrived at the ISS in September last year, also aboard a SpaceX shuttle, with two empty seats reserved for Williams and Wilmore. Hague and Gorbunov were part of the Crew 9, which is a routine staff rotation mission, operated jointly by NASA and SpaceX.
Meanwhile, the four Crew 10 astronauts who docked at the ISS on Sunday are taking over the routine operations at the ISS from Crew 9. NASA ensures that the U.S.-controlled part of the ISS is always fully staffed with four members at any given point. Extending the stranded astronauts stay was also part of saving a multi-million dollar return mission to bring them back home.
Is Tesla a Buy, Hold, or Sell?
While Musk’s SpaceX is making headlines for all the right reasons, his other company, Telsa (TSLA), is facing one of its toughest times, with global protests and a tarnished brand image. Analysts are preferring to remain on the sidelines on Tesla stock until the dust settles.
On TipRanks, TSLA stock has a Hold consensus rating based on 12 Buys, 13 Holds, and 12 Sell ratings. Also, the average Tesla price target of $323.83 implies 36.1% upside potential from current levels. Year-to-date, TSLA stock has lost 41.1%.
Questions or Comments about the article? Write to editor@tipranks.com