Featured Image Credit: Chris Unger / Contributor / Getty
Elon Musk has revealed that US President Donald Trump has asked SpaceX to help bring two stranded astronauts back to Earth from the International Space Station, where they have been trapped for over six months now.
We've all had our eyes on the situation of stranded NASA astronauts Sunita "Suni" Williams and Butch Wilmore over the past couple of months, as their situation is one that not many would wish to be in right now.
Having reached the International Space Station (ISS) in June 2024, the pair were only meant to be there for around eight days, yet that stay has extended for over six months now after serious issues with their spacecraft's Starliner propulsion system were discovered.
Many have been concerned about the pair's health as photos were released showing their 'gaunt' physical appearance, and it reached the point where NASA had to step in to reassure everyone that they were healthy and alright.
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While they have managed to step outside of the ISS for a short while, they're still waiting for an escort back to Earth at the hands of a SpaceX Crew-10 mission.
That might be happening sooner than initially thought though, as reported by NDTV, as SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk has announced on X.
"The POTUS has asked SpaceX to bring home the 2 astronauts stranded on the [ISS] as soon as possible. We will do so." Musk added that it is "terrible that the Biden administration left them there for that long."
The @POTUS has asked @SpaceX to bring home the 2 astronauts stranded on the @Space_Station as soon as possible. We will do so.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 28, 2025
Terrible that the Biden administration left them there so long.
It was agreed during Biden's time in government that the Crew-10 SpaceX mission would bring the pair back, so it's unclear as to why it has taken so long for everything to happen.
Musk also argued in a reply that it was "true" that the previous government "hated you more than they wanted to rescue those astronauts," yet once again this is likely just conjecture.
US President Donald Trump has also reaffirmed this mission, declaring on Truth Social: "I have just asked Elon Musk and SpaceX to 'go get' the 2 brave astronauts who have been virtually abandoned in space by the Biden Administration.
"They have been waiting for many months on [the ISS]. Elon will soon be on his way. Hopefully, all will be safe. Good luck Elon!!"
There remains still no official time scale for the Crew-10 mission to take place, but you'd imagine that it'd be in the very near future considering how much the pair are stressing its importance.
You just have to hope that Williams and Wilmore can wait that little bit longer, and they'll definitely be thankful to have a break from urine soup once they finally return back home.
