SpaceX saved the astronauts and sent them to NASA’s Johnson Space Center
SpaceX saved the astronauts and sent them to NASA’s Johnson Space Center, Image: SpaceX
The Crew-9 mission, a collaboration between NASA and SpaceX, launched on September 28, 2024, at 1:17 p.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex 40 in Florida, using a Falcon 9 rocket to send the Dragon spacecraft Freedom to the International Space Station (ISS).
The crew included NASA astronauts Nick Hague (commander), Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, docking with the ISS on September 29 at 5:30 p.m. EDT.
While Hague and Gorbunov spent 171 days in space, Williams and Wilmore, who arrived earlier on Boeing’s Starliner in June 2024, logged 286 days, contributing to over 900 hours of research, including plant growth studies, stem cell experiments, and spacewalks for ISS maintenance.
The team undocked from the ISS on March 18, 2025, at 1:05 a.m. EDT and splashed down off Tallahassee, Florida, at 5:57 p.m. EDT, concluding their mission with a safe recovery by SpaceX teams, after which they were taken to NASA’s Johnson Space Center for evaluations.
Lila Verma
Senior Writer at Elon Musk Power, bringing you the most compelling and in-depth coverage of Elon Musk’s groundbreaking ventures—Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, and beyond. Passionate about innovation, technology, and the future Musk is building. Delivering authentic, high-quality insights with precision and speed.