Washington: NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore finally returned to Earth after numerous rescheduling and issues.

They safely splashed down in a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, marking the end of their 286-day mission aboard the International Space Station.

Williams and Wilmore, who launched aboard Boeing's Starliner spacecraft in June 2024, spent nearly nine months in space, traveling over 121 million miles and completing 4,576 orbits around Earth. During their mission, they contributed to numerous scientific experiments, technology demonstrations, and maintenance activities aboard the space station.

Williams, a veteran astronaut, set a record for total spacewalking time by a female astronaut, with 62 hours and 6 minutes outside the station. She and Wilmore also conducted extensive research on plant growth, stem cell technology, and microorganisms in space.

A statement read NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 successfully completed its ninth commercial crew rotation mission to the International Space Station, splashing down safely in a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida. The crew of four, consisting of NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, and Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, returned to Earth at 5:57 p.m. EDT on Tuesday.

During their mission, the crew traveled millions of miles, conducted numerous scientific experiments, and performed maintenance activities aboard the space station. Williams and Wilmore spent 286 days in space, covering 121,347,491 miles and completing 4,576 orbits around Earth. Hague and Gorbunov spent 171 days in space, traveling 72,553,920 miles and completing 2,736 orbits.

The crew contributed to over 150 scientific experiments and technology demonstrations, including investigations on plant growth, stem cell technology, and microorganisms in space. Williams also conducted two spacewalks, setting a record for total spacewalking time by a female astronaut, a statement read.

The Crew-9 mission marked the fourth flight of the Dragon spacecraft named Freedom, which will return to Florida for inspection and processing. The mission is part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program, aimed at providing safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from the space station and low Earth orbit.