Exact Moment Crew 10 Arrive At ISS To Bring Stuck Astronauts Home

International Space Station: The hatch of SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft swung open on March 16 at precisely 1:35 a.m. ET. (IST 11:30). The Crew-10 astronauts stepped into the International Space Station (ISS), greeted with cheers and excitement by the Expedition 72 crew. 

Crew 10 Arrive At ISS 

SpaceX launched its Dragon spacecraft on March 14 to bring home NASA astronauts who had been stranded aboard the ISS for an extended period.

Exact Moment Crew 10 Arrive At ISS

NASA's Johnson Space Center shared video of Crew-10 entered the Space Station with the rest of their excited Expedition 72 crew. The video post reads, “All the hugs. 🫶 The hatch of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft opened March 16 at 1:35 a.m. ET and the members of Crew-10 entered the @Space_Station with the rest of their excited Expedition 72 crew.”

The Crew-10 mission, a collaborative effort between NASA and SpaceX, was launched on March 14 from Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. The Falcon 9 rocket carried the Dragon spacecraft, which docked with the ISS after a flawless journey through space. The crew aboard Dragon included NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, JAXA astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov. Their mission was to facilitate the safe return of NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, who had been stranded due to technical difficulties with their original spacecraft.

ALSO READ: Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore Closer to Earth as NASA Crew Arrives For Their Rescue

The plight of Williams and Wilmore began in June 2024 when they arrived at the ISS aboard Boeing's Starliner spacecraft. What was supposed to be a brief mission turned into a nine-month ordeal after the Starliner was deemed unsafe for their return. The delay in their rescue sparked widespread attention and even political discourse, with people blaming Biden administration for the delay.

The new crew will spend the next few days acclimating to the ISS and preparing for the stranded astronauts transfer process. Williams, Wilmore, and others are scheduled to return to Earth on March 19, bringing an end to their unexpected extended stay.