Crew-9 splashes down while NASA floats along with Trump and Musk nonsense
- Reference: 1742392032
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2025/03/19/crew9_mission_misinformation/
- Source link:
NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, and Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov [1]successfully splashed down off the coast of Florida last night, concluding a 286-day stint in space for Williams and Wilmore.
The duo arrived at the International Space Station (ISS) on June 6, 2024, on the first crewed test flight of the Boeing Starliner spacecraft, but after issues with the Calamity Capsule, mission management elected to return the capsule to Earth empty, and have the pair become part of Crew-9.
[2]
Hague and Gorbunov arrived at the ISS on September 29, 2024, to join Williams and Wilmore. The [3]four departed the ISS in the Crew-9 capsule on March 18, before making a successful splashdown.
[4]
[5]
If only it had been that simple.
US President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk elected to use the mission as a means to berate the previous administration, [6]beginning with a January post claiming that Musk had been instructed to "go get" the "virtually abandoned" astronauts. The astronauts were already scheduled to return to Earth as part of the Crew-9/Crew-10 rotation using a SpaceX Crew Dragon.
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It got worse. Musk then [8]insisted that an offer had been made to the previous administration to retrieve the Starliner duo, which was rejected.
Technically, such a mission would have been possible. Another Crew Dragon could have been rushed into service, and a Falcon 9 pulled from the manifest.
But the cost would have been enormous, not to mention the disruption this would have caused. Both NASA and SpaceX officials have professed ignorance of the discussion.
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Trump continued on Monday, [10]posting : "I asked Elon Musk to go up and get the abandoned Astronauts because the Biden Administration was incapable of doing so."
While such rhetoric is par for the course with Trump, his inclusion of NASA's acting administrator in his post, who he claimed responded to him with "Let's bring them home NOW, Sir!" is more worrying for anyone hoping that the space agency might be able to orbit above political mudslinging.
The Register contacted NASA to verify Petro's comment and also if the astronauts had indeed been "abandoned."
[11]SpaceX Dragon pod arrives at ISS to finally pick up stranded Boeing astronaut pair
[12]SpaceX Crew Dragons swapped so ISS crew can go home early
[13]Trump tells Musk to 'go get' Starliner astronauts
[14]Stranded in space: Starliner crew to remain in orbit even longer as SpaceX faces delays
A spokesperson told us: "I can confirm our acting administrator spoke to the President this week and, like all of us, showed her enthusiasm for returning NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 mission.
"It's important to note that NASA has worked diligently under both the Trump Administration and previously under the Biden Administration, to ensure our crew returns safely."
The Register also understands that the line within NASA is that the decision to switch Crew Dragon spacecraft was made after Trump's request to Musk. The Crew Dragon originally intended for Crew-10 was delayed, although Trump did not mention this.
Rather than patiently explain how mission planning works and correct misunderstandings, it appears that certain elements within the agency have elected to toe the party line.
Confusion over Crew-9 and Crew-10 has extended to other parts of the US administration. The X account of the US Space Force yesterday [15]posted a short clip of the Crew-10 launch with the words: "Today, a Falcon 9 rocket 🚀 that launched last weekend will bring U.S. Space Force Col. Nick Hague back to Earth."
The Falcon 9 launched on Friday, March 14. We saw it with our own eyes, The Register was there on the ground in Florida in the person of this reporter. But the Crew Dragon that brought Hague back to Earth had been attached to the ISS since September last year.
As one comment put it: "This is embarrassing, guys."
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Space Force fail screenshot - click to enlarge
The Crew-9 mission to the ISS is over, and Williams and Wilmore have safely returned to Earth. However, the swirl of misinformation and falsehoods around their time in space shows no sign of abating, and formerly trusted agencies such as NASA are unwilling to correct the record. ®
Get our [17]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.nasa.gov/blogs/spacestation/2025/03/18/nasas-spacex-crew-9-splashes-down-off-coast-of-florida/
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Z9r4NPUkJZjo34YU3DpWgAAAAU0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://www.nasa.gov/blogs/spacestation/2025/03/18/dragon-undocks-with-spacex-crew-9-members-for-return-to-earth/
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Z9r4NPUkJZjo34YU3DpWgAAAAU0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Z9r4NPUkJZjo34YU3DpWgAAAAU0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/29/trump_musk_starliner/
[7] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Z9r4NPUkJZjo34YU3DpWgAAAAU0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[8] https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1892584783064052114
[9] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Z9r4NPUkJZjo34YU3DpWgAAAAU0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[10] https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114179081339591399
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2025/03/17/crew10_iss/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/12/spacex_crew_dragons_swapped_for/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/29/trump_musk_starliner/
[14] https://www.theregister.com/2024/12/19/spacex_delayed_boeing_crew/
[15] https://x.com/SpaceForceDoD/status/1902012181228487047
[16] https://regmedia.co.uk/2025/03/19/us_space_force_fail.jpg
[17] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Not that the people of those lands wouldn't also appreciate you S-ingTFU
I'd like to add that many people from most other countries of the world would probably also agree with that request. Maybe spare Russia and North Korea.
It could even easily be the absolutely most supported request about any politician in the history of the world - by far ...
I'm sorry, but in a renaming frenzy that includes the Gulf of America, it has been determined that the 'United States' needs to be amended as well.
Welcome, ladies and gentlemen to the Glorious Kingdom of Trumpistan. Down is up, left is right, lies are truths and those who report on the truth are lairs. Where the United States was a democracy, Trumpistan is the exact opposite. A pleasure dome for fascism, dictators, the morally corrupt, unelected potentates and fluffy unicorn fantasies, but only if you make more than 10 million a year.
All hail the Great Pumpkin of Trumpistan.
The province of Canada Minor.
Current governor one Donald Trump.
Or is that Baja Canada?
Trumpistan?
I'd go with Trumpton, as its run & populated by a bunch of puppets.
Re: Trumpistan?
That's insulting to both Trumpton and its puppets.
Down is up, left is right, lies are truths and those who report on the truth are lairs.
This is this week's loyalty test, next week there will be another one. Please stand by.
P.S. Note that failure to pass loyalty tests will have career-changing consequences.
a renaming frenzy that includes the Gulf of America
I wonder what would happen if someone ever brought Canada Geese to Trump's attention :-)
Canada
> Which, by the way, does not include Canada.
Maybe, just as a thought experiment , it's not such a bad idea for Canada to join the US.
Just think, we'd have roughly 40 million more people, which translates to 50 or so new congressional districts, which would more than likely flip the House 1 .
If we admit the ten provinces and three territories as individual states, that means 26 new Senators, which could easily flip the Senate.
And it doesn't have to be forever. . . just, say 8 or 10 years, until we can get rid of the oligarchs and felons and pass universal health care (we understand Canada can give us some tips there). . . then Canada can go back to being a subject of King Chuck or however all that vestigial royal stuff works (I'm too lazy and American 2 to figure it all out).
So waddaya say, Canada? Help a pal out.
It's not like we haven't helped you out by giving employment to all your actors and like that. I mean, you owe us Big Time for William Shatner alone.
________________
1 No, sorry, you can't keep your parties, they're far too confusing for us Americans -- only D and R allowed. Two is as high as we can count; after that we get confused. Besides, seriously, who knows what Progressive Conservative even means.
2 Yes, I repeat myself.
Re: Canada
@ Dr Farnsworth
Yes, the extra states thing had crossed my mind. I suspect not many newly minted US Citizens would be inclined to vote Republican.
As long as they don't try the Puerto Rico 'non incorporated territory' bullshit.
Envious
The Falcon 9 launched on Friday, March 14. We saw it with our own eyes, The Register was there on the ground in Florida in the person of this reporter.
I am envious, I have only ever seen rocket launches on television. From the Apollo missions through the Space Shuttle and some of the Ariane launches, but always on TV. Maybe one day I will get to watch one in person.
Delayed return
They would have been back two months ago except some clown deleted ‘Gulf of Mexico’ from their navigation system and they didn’t have the coordinates to program their return journey.
Astronauts returned home safe and sound. Awesome news! I'm sure the astronauts and their families give huge thanks to Elon Musk & SpaceX, without them this would not have been possible.
Great to see them get back safely, but the dolphins were the stars of the show.
Should we be worried that dolphins are taking an interest in spaceflight? Next thing is they'll be leaving us coded messages disguised as tricks.
Ihk eekh eekh, ikh ikh eekh
"So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish"
Re: Ihk eekh eekh, ikh ikh eekh
More like "Welcome back, where's the fish?".
Hitchhikers Guide
The dolphins reminded me somewhat of something similar to the Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy in that the dolphins were the intelligent species observing human antics.
Well, they _could_ have used the Starliner capsule that returned safe and sound last year, but having the Dragon option allowed sober risk assessments to be made.
Speaking of the Starliner, have any future plans for it been announced yet?
It has a doubtful future according to Wikipedia...
Designed to be mated with Atlas V, Delta IV, Falcon 9, and Vulcan Centaur. ULA have stopped producing the Atlas V apparently, the Delta IV has been retired, the Vulcan Centaur isn't yet human rated which leaves only the Falcon 9, which, of course, has it's own capsule and is the competition.
baaahhh! *it's -> its.
Why do I only notice these things after the edit timeout has expired?
they _could_ have used the Starliner capsule
True, but they'd have needed to fit super-clench-resistant seating. Even as a test pilot, I would imagine riding a ship with no ejector seat and was already known to have issues would be more than gluteus-stimulating.
Payment?
They were supposed to be on the ISS for a week, they had to stay for months, do they get overtime for the extra time?
Re: Payment?
No, but since the founder of AirBnB joined DOGE, they'll be charged rent for all the time they stayed there.
Well what do you expect? Anyone who doesn't toe the line will no longer be working for NASA by end of day.
Dear fElon Musk-
STFU!
Sincerely, The People of the United States.
Which, by the way, does not include Canada. Or Greenland. Or the Panama Canal. (Not that the people of those lands wouldn't also appreciate you S-ingTFU).