A NASA astronauts’ stay in space is just part of the job: the Boeing Starliner made a smooth landing in New Mexico last week
The two NASA astronauts who have been stuck on the International Space Station for over a week are in good spirits and planning to vote in November.
We are pushing the edges of the envelope in everything we do. And it is not easy,” mission commander Butch Wilmore said. It isn’t an easy thing to do, but that’s not why we do it. Maybe we do it because it’s hard.”
Their extended stay in space was caused by technical issues with their ship, the Boeing Starliner, during what was initially supposed to be a final test flight before the Starliner would be certified by NASA for regular use in missions.
After considering whether it was safe to return to Earth with Williams and Wilmore aboard the Boeing spaceship, the Starliners made a smooth landing in New Mexico last week.
The Boeing Starliner is the latest in a series of PR blows to the company, which also produces commercial airplanes.
Boeing’s 737 MAX has faced safety concerns after two crashes left hundreds of passengers dead, and Boeing has struggled to repair the public perception of their company as being lax on air safety.
Source: Stranded NASA astronauts say being stuck in space is just part of the job
What do we stand for in space? The NASA astronauts that helped make the International Space Station crew aware of what they did and what they could do
Drawing attention to Williams’ NASA logoed shirt, he said: “That represents something that we stand for as an agency. We go further. We do things that are out of the ordinary. We send humans out to space.
While they missed out on family and friends, the space flight veterans enjoyed their time aboard the International Space Station and the work they could do as members of the crew.
The astronauts will miss Election Day on Earth in November, but that won’t keep them from participating. “It’s a very important duty that we have as citizens, and [we’re] looking forward to being able to vote from space, which is pretty cool,” Williams said.
Neither astronaut expressed dismay at being aboard ISS longer. Williams said that space is his happy place because he can do a lot of things upside down and sideways.
NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore spoke about their continued stay aboard the International Space Station during a press conference held yesterday. The two are now included in the crew of the International Space Station as the Boeing Starliner that was supposed to bring them home was not sent back to Earth.
NASA decided against flying the craft back with the two on board due to issues with Starliner. But Wilmore said that with more time, “we could have gotten to the point, I believe, where we could have returned on Starliner. We simply ran out of time. Instead, the two have become part of the ISS crew.
The mission of the OBNI Space Mission: getting the most out of Nasa, and landing the worst astronauts in space [and] sending probes beyond the solar system
“This operation is not easy. NASA does a great job — the people at Nasa do a great job — of making a lot of things look easy. Sending probes beyond the edge of our solar system; going in [and] getting samples from asteroids; humans in space. It’s a very risky business and things sometimes don’t turn out how you want.
