NASA and SpaceX have launched a crewed mission to the International Space Station (ISS) to facilitate the return of astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore.

Astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita Williams are set to return to Earth after nearly 300 days in space, far exceeding their original 8-day mission plan.

A SpaceX Dragon spacecraft successfully docked with the ISS, allowing for the anticipated rescue of NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore

The Crew-9 commander wore the extraterrestrial outfit while awaiting the arrival of Anne McClain, Nichole Ayers, Takuya Onishi, and Kirill Pesko.

NASA astronauts Sunita "Suni" Williams and Barry "Butch" Wilmore have been on the International Space Station for more than eight months, even though they initially expected to stay for just about eight days.

NASA astronauts Sunita Williams, Nick Hague, Barry Wilmore, and Donald Pettit unbox Thanksgiving meals, from the International Space Station (ISS), in this screen grab taken from a handout video, released on November 26,