Rahul Somvanshi
SpaceX successfully launched the Crew-10 mission on March 14, 2025, at 7:03 PM Eastern Time from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The mission’s primary purpose is to replace NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, who have been stranded on the International Space Station (ISS) for nine months.
Williams and Wilmore originally flew to the ISS on Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft in June 2024 for what was planned as an eight-day mission. Technical problems with Starliner’s propulsion system, including helium leaks and thruster failures, led NASA to deem the spacecraft too risky for their return. The Starliner returned to Earth empty in September 2024.
The Crew-10 Team
The four-person Crew-10 team aboard the Dragon spacecraft “Endurance” includes:
- Anne McClain (NASA): Mission Commander
- Nichole Ayers (NASA): Pilot
- Takuya Onishi (JAXA): Mission Specialist
- Kirill Peskov (Roscosmos): Mission Specialist
All four are experienced pilots, with McClain and Ayers having military backgrounds, while Onishi and Peskov previously served as airline pilots.
Technical Details and Timeline
The mission faced a brief delay when SpaceX scrubbed the initial launch attempt on March 12 due to a hydraulic issue with a clamp arm on the Falcon 9 rocket’s support structure. Engineers successfully resolved the problem by flushing out trapped air in the system.
After launch, observers noted a piece of insulation from the Falcon 9’s second stage liquid oxygen tank floating away during Dragon’s separation. Sarah Walker, SpaceX’s director of Dragon mission management, confirmed this was normal, stating: “It’s a foam material that did its job on the way to orbit, and then it’s okay if it liberates.”
The Crew Dragon is scheduled to dock with the ISS around 11:30 PM Eastern on March 15, 2025. Following a four-day handover period, Williams and Wilmore are expected to depart the station on March 19 aboard the Dragon “Freedom” spacecraft that brought Crew-9 to the station last September.
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Political Controversy
The extended stay of Williams and Wilmore has become entangled in political discussions. President Donald Trump and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk claimed, without evidence, that the previous Biden administration left the astronauts on the station for political reasons.
However, NASA officials have consistently maintained that their decisions were based on technical and programmatic factors. When asked about these claims, Ken Bowersox, NASA‘s associate administrator for space operations, stated: “The programs work what makes the most sense for them, programmatically, technically.”
The astronauts themselves have rejected the notion that politics played a role. “We came prepared to stay long, even though we planned to stay short,” Wilmore said, adding that he did not believe NASA’s decision was affected by politics. “That’s what your nation’s human spaceflight program’s all about—planning for unknown, unexpected contingencies.”
Historical Significance
During their extended stay, Williams and Wilmore helped maintain the station—fixing equipment, conducting experiments, and even performing spacewalks. Williams set a new record for women with nine spacewalks, the most time spent spacewalking over a career.
The mission highlights SpaceX’s pivotal role in NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, with the company now regularly providing transportation services to and from the ISS while Boeing continues to address issues with its Starliner spacecraft.
As Williams reflected in a recent interview: “This mission has brought a little attention. There’s goods and bads to that. But I think the good part is more and more people have been interested in what we’re doing with space exploration.”
FAQ
What happened to the original Boeing Starliner mission?
The Boeing Starliner spacecraft that took Williams and Wilmore to the ISS in June 2024 experienced helium leaks and thruster failures during its flight. After months of investigation, NASA determined it was unsafe for the astronauts to return on this vehicle, so the Starliner returned to Earth empty in September 2024, leaving the astronauts on the ISS until a replacement ride could be arranged.
Why was the Crew-10 launch delayed?
The initial Crew-10 launch attempt on March 12, 2025, was scrubbed less than 45 minutes before liftoff due to a hydraulic problem with a clamp arm on the strongback supporting the Falcon 9 rocket. SpaceX resolved the issue by flushing out a pocket of trapped air in the system, allowing for a successful launch two days later on March 14.
Who are the Crew-10 astronauts?
The Crew-10 mission includes NASA astronauts Anne McClain (Commander) and Nichole Ayers (Pilot), Japanese astronaut Takuya Onishi (JAXA), and Russian cosmonaut Kirill Peskov (Roscosmos). All four are experienced pilots who will spend about six months on the International Space Station performing scientific research and maintenance tasks.
When will Williams and Wilmore return to Earth?
Williams and Wilmore are scheduled to depart the ISS on March 19, 2025, after a four-day handover with the newly arrived Crew-10 team. They will return on the SpaceX Dragon “Freedom” spacecraft that brought Crew-9 astronauts to the station in September 2024, which has had two empty seats reserved for them.
What records were broken during this mission?
NASA astronaut Sunita Williams set a new record for women with nine spacewalks, giving her the most time spent spacewalking over a career for any female astronaut. What was planned as an eight-day mission turned into a nine-month stay on the International Space Station.
Why was there controversy about the astronauts’ extended stay?
President Donald Trump and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk claimed that the previous Biden administration kept Williams and Wilmore on the ISS for political reasons, though they provided no evidence for this claim. NASA officials have maintained that all decisions were based on technical and safety considerations, not politics. The astronauts themselves have stated they don’t believe politics played a role in NASA’s decisions.
