Time For Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore To Head Home — How To Watch The Crew-9 Landing LIVE
The ISS will bid farewell to the Crew-9 astronauts as they return to Earth aboard the Dragon spacecraft. NASA and SpaceX are monitoring weather for their scheduled splashdown off the coast of Florida.
The International Space Station (ISS) is preparing to bid farewell to four astronauts from the Crew-9 mission, as they begin their journey back to Earth. NASA and SpaceX are closely monitoring weather conditions ahead of their scheduled return on Tuesday, March 18, with live coverage available for space enthusiasts to follow the event in real time.
NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, and Butch Wilmore, along with Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, will board the Dragon spacecraft and depart from the Harmony module to conclude their long-duration science mission aboard the ISS, NASA said. Their return will also bring back crucial scientific research and experiment samples.
In the final hours before departure, Hague and Gorbunov conducted research on muscle stimulation and fluid shifts in space, while Wilmore and Williams focused on maintenance tasks and securing cargo inside Dragon for the return trip.
Meanwhile, NASA and SpaceX mission teams are keeping a close watch on sea states and weather conditions ahead of Crew-9’s scheduled landing. Should conditions change, backup opportunities will be assessed.
.@NASA will provide live coverage of Crew-9’s return to Earth from the @Space_Station, beginning with @SpaceX Dragon hatch closure preparations at 10:45pm ET Monday, March 17.
— NASA Commercial Crew (@Commercial_Crew) March 16, 2025
Splashdown is slated for approximately 5:57pm Tuesday, March 18: https://t.co/yABLg20tKX pic.twitter.com/alujSplsHm
When And How To Watch Crew-9’s Return
NASA will provide LIVE coverage of Crew-9’s departure and splashdown, starting with hatch closure preparations at 10:45 pm EDT on Monday, March 17. The undocking process begins at 1:05 am EDT on Tuesday, March 18, followed by the deorbit burn and re-entry before the expected splashdown off the coast of Florida at 5.57 pm EDT (3.27 am IST, March 19).
For those who want to watch the journey live, NASA+ and NASA Live will be streaming all key moments.
Tuesday, March 18
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- 12.45 am EDT (10.15 am IST) – Undocking coverage begins
- 1.05 am EDT (10.35 am IST) – Scheduled time for undocking
Wednesday, March 19
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- 4.45 pm EDT (2.15 am IST) – Return coverage resumes
- 5.11 pm EDT (2.41 am IST) – Deorbit burn (time approximate)
- 5.57 pm EDT (3.27 am IST) – Splashdown (time approximate)
- 7:30 pm EDT (5 am IST) – Return-to-Earth media conference
What’s Next For The ISS Crew?
As Crew-9 prepares to leave, Crew-10 astronauts Anne McClain, Nichole Ayers, Takuya Onishi, and Kirill Peskovare are settling into life aboard the ISS, continuing research and station maintenance as part of Expedition 72. Their arrival marks the beginning of their months-long mission in orbit.
Additionally, NASA astronaut Don Pettit and Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner are set to leave the ISS in April aboard Soyuz MS-26, making way for the arrival of Soyuz MS-27 with NASA astronaut Jonny Kim and cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky.
NASA said the Progress 91 spacecraft recently performed an orbital reboost, ensuring the ISS is at the correct altitude for April’s Soyuz crew swap.
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