Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore return to Earth; What’s next for the astronauts?
ByCox Media Group National Content Desk
NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Returns To Earth NASA astronaut Suni Williams is helped out of a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN after she, NASA astronaut Nick Hague, and Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov landed in the water off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. Hague, Gorbunov, Williams, and Wilmore are returning from a long-duration science expedition aboard the International Space Station. (Photo by NASA / Keegan Barber / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images) (Anadolu/Anadolu via Getty Images)
ByCox Media Group National Content Desk
After an extended trip to space finally came to an end on Tuesday, what is next for astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore?
After a more than nine-month trip on the International Space Station, Williams and Wilmore splashed down off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, late Tuesday afternoon.
They were accompanied by NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov.
“Nick, Alek, Butch, Suni on behalf of SpaceX, welcome home,” the crew was told by Mission Control.
They were taken from the SpaceX Freedom capsule.
Williams and Wilmore will have to be examined by medical teams and have tests done since extended stays in space can affect their bodies, weakening bones and muscles and increasing the risk of cataracts and cancer.
They may also have a feeling of sensory overload, psychologists say.
“After months in the calm, controlled environment of space, the sensory changes may feel overwhelming. The pull of gravity might feel strange and uncomfortable, natural sunlight could seem too bright, and even everyday smells like grass or food might feel intense at first,” Susan Albers from the Cleveland Clinic said. “These sensations take time to get used to again.
Normal routines may also prove to be difficult since the ISS is run in a structured environment. When they’re back home, schedules aren’t as strict.
For example, an astronaut who is used to eating at the same time every day might find it tricky to adjust to family mealtimes that aren’t as predictable," Albers said.
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NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Returns To Earth In this handout image provided by NASA, A SpaceX Dragon spacecraft is seen as it lands with NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov aboard in the water on March 18, 2025 off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, Hague, Gorbunov, Williams, and Wilmore are returning from a long-duration science expedition aboard the International Space Station. (Photo by Keegan Barber/NASA via Getty Images) (Handout/NASA via Getty Images)
NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Returns To Earth Support teams work around a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft shortly after it landed with NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov aboard in the water off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. Hague, Gorbunov, Williams, and Wilmore are returning from a long-duration science expedition aboard the International Space Station. (Photo by NASA / Keegan Barber / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images) (Anadolu/Anadolu via Getty Images)
NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Returns To Earth In this handout image provided by NASA, A SpaceX Dragon spacecraft is seen as it lands with NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov aboard in the water on March 18, 2025 off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, Hague, Gorbunov, Williams, and Wilmore are returning from a long-duration science expedition aboard the International Space Station. (Photo by Keegan Barber/NASA via Getty Images) (Handout/NASA via Getty Images)
NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Returns To Earth In this handout image provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), support teams work on the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft shortly after it landed with NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov onboard on March 18, 2025 off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida. Williams and Wilmore were returning from a stay onboard the International Space Station that began in June 2024. (Photo by Keegan Barber/NASA via Getty Images) (Handout/NASA via Getty Images)
NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Returns To Earth NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore(l), Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov (2nd L), and NASA astronauts Nick Hague (2nd R) and Suni Williams (R) are seen inside a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN shortly after having landed in the water off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. Hague, Gorbunov, Williams, and Wilmore are returning from a long-duration science expedition aboard the International Space Station. (Photo by NASA / Keegan Barber / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images) (Anadolu/Anadolu via Getty Images)
NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Returns To Earth NASA astronaut Suni Williams is helped out of a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN after she, NASA astronaut Nick Hague, and Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov landed in the water off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. Hague, Gorbunov, Williams, and Wilmore are returning from a long-duration science expedition aboard the International Space Station. (Photo by NASA / Keegan Barber / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images) (Anadolu/Anadolu via Getty Images)
NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Returns To Earth NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore is helped out of a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN after he, NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov landed in the water off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. Hague, Gorbunov, Williams, and Wilmore are returning from a long-duration science expedition aboard the International Space Station. (Photo by NASA / Keegan Barber / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images) (Anadolu/Anadolu via Getty Images)
NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Returns To Earth NASA astronaut Suni Williams is helped out of a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN after she, NASA astronaut Nick Hague, and Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov landed in the water off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. Hague, Gorbunov, Williams, and Wilmore are returning from a long-duration science expedition aboard the International Space Station. (Photo by NASA / Keegan Barber / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images) (Anadolu/Anadolu via Getty Images)
NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Returns To Earth NASA astronaut Nick Hague is helped out of a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN after, NASA astronauts Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov landed in the water off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. Hague, Gorbunov, Williams, and Wilmore are returning from a long-duration science expedition aboard the International Space Station. (Photo by NASA / Keegan Barber / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images) (Anadolu/Anadolu via Getty Images)
NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Returns To Earth Teachers from Gurukul school of art carry back a painting welcoming American astronauts, Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore back to earth on the street outside their art school in Mumbai. American astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore will be returning back to earth after more than nine months aboard the International Space Station (ISS). (Photo by Ashish Vaishnav/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images) (SOPA Images/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Gett)
SpaceX Stuck Astronauts From left, Joel Montalbano, deputy associate administrator, NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate; Steve Stich, manager, NASA's Commercial Crew Program; and Bill Spetch, operations integration manager, NASA's International Space Station Program, speak to reporters during a press conference at Johnson Space Center on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, in Houston, following the splashdown of astronauts Butch Wilmore, Suni Williams, Nick Hague, and Alexander Gorbunov. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis) (Ashley Landis/AP)
SpaceX Stuck Astronauts Bill Spetch, operations integration manager, NASA's International Space Station Program, speaks to reporters during a press conference at Johnson Space Center on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, in Houston, following the splashdown of astronauts Butch Wilmore, Suni Williams, Nick Hague, and Alexander Gorbunov. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis) (Ashley Landis/AP)
SpaceX Stuck Astronauts Villagers cheer while watching a NASA live stream as they gather to pray for the safe return of NASA astronaut Suni Williams from the International Space Station (ISS), at a temple in her ancestral village Jhulasan in Mehsana district of Gujarat state, India, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki) (Ajit Solanki/AP)
SpaceX Stuck Astronaut Villagers light fire crackers and dance as they celebrate the safe return of NASA astronaut Suni Williams from the International Space Station (ISS), at a temple in her ancestral village Jhulasan in Mehsana district of Gujarat state, India, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki) (Ajit Solanki/AP)
SpaceX-Stuck-Astronauts NASA employees react on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, at Johnson Space Center in Houston after watching astronauts splash down off the coast of Florida. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis) (Ashley Landis/AP)
SpaceX-Stuck-Astronauts This image taken from video provided by SpaceX shows NASA's Suni Williams being helped after exiting the SpaceX capsule, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (SpaceX via AP) (Uncredited/AP)
SpaceX-Stuck-Astronauts This image taken from video provided by SpaceX shows NASA's Butch Wilmore being helped after exiting the SpaceX capsule, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (SpaceX via AP) (Uncredited/AP)
SpaceX-Stuck-Astronauts This image taken from video released by SpaceX shows dolphins swimming near a SpaceX capsule, Tuesday, March 18, 2025, after landing off the coast of Florida with NASA astronauts Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore and Nick Hague, and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov. (SpaceX via AP) (Uncredited/AP)
