Sunita Williams' Return To Earth Delayed As SpaceX Scrubs Crew-10 Launch Due To Technical Issue

The concerns over a critical hydraulic system arose less than four hours ahead of Falcon rocket’s planned liftoff from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.

SpaceX Crew-10 mission to bring back Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore was scheduled for a launch at 5:18 AM on Wednesday (IST), but it was called off due to technical issues.

Source : PTI

SpaceX delayed the planned launch of Crew-10 mission to the International Space Station due to a last-minute technical issue in the rocket's launchpad. This has delayed the return of NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Butch Wilmore to Earth.  

Officials just informed about the cancellation during the launch countdown but did not confirm a new launch date for the Crew-10 mission. Providing an update on the mission's status, NASA said on X: "#Crew10 status: NASA and SpaceX are standing down on the March 12 launch attempt."

The SpaceX Crew-10 mission was scheduled to launch aboard a Falcon 9 rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 7:48 PM EST on March 12 (5:18  AM IST, March 13). It was supposed to carry four Crew-10 astronauts including, NASA's Nichole Ayers and Anne McClain, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov to the ISS.

The mission is aimed at replacing the previous NASA Crew-9 including Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore, who have been stranded in space for nearly nine months after their trip on Boeing's Starliner encountered major breakdowns in transit last year in September.

Starliner’s debut crew flight was supposed to last a week, but due to the technical issues, NASA ordered the capsule to return empty. Williams and Wilmore were transferred to SpaceX for the return leg. 

What Went Wrong During Crew-10 Launch?

The concerns over a critical hydraulic system arose less than four hours ahead of Falcon rocket’s planned liftoff from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.

As the countdown neared liftoff, engineers examined the hydraulics which support the release of one of the two arms securing the rocket to its support structure. This structure must tilt back right before liftoff.

Meanwhile, strapped into their capsule, the four astronauts awaited the final call. With less than an hour left, SpaceX took the final call—scrubbed for the day.

Although the company did not immediately announce a new launch date, it noted the next launch try could be as early as Thursday night, Associated Press reported.