NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 has successfully completed the agency’s ninth commercial crew rotation mission to the International Space Station, marking another milestone in space exploration. The crew made a safe return to Earth on Tuesday, as their SpaceX Dragon spacecraft splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida.

The mission crew—NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, and Butch Wilmore, along with Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov—landed at 5:57 p.m. EDT. Following a smooth descent, recovery teams aboard SpaceX vessels swiftly retrieved both the spacecraft and its crew.

After reaching the shore, the astronauts will board a flight to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, where they will reunite with their families and begin post-mission evaluations. This successful return marks another achievement in NASA’s ongoing partnership with SpaceX, advancing human spaceflight and paving the way for future missions beyond low Earth orbit.

“We are thrilled to have Suni, Butch, Nick, and Aleksandr home after their months-long mission conducting vital science, technology demonstrations, and maintenance aboard the International Space Station,” said NASA acting Administrator Janet Petro. “Per President Trump’s direction, NASA and SpaceX worked diligently to pull the schedule a month earlier. This international crew and our teams on the ground embraced the Trump Administration’s challenge of an updated, and somewhat unique, mission plan, to bring our crew home. Through preparation, ingenuity, and dedication, we achieve great things together for the benefit of humanity, pushing the boundaries of what is possible from low Earth orbit to the Moon and Mars.”

The mission logged impressive statistics, highlighting the extensive time and distance traveled by the astronauts:

• Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore traveled 121,347,491 miles, spent 286 days in space, and completed 4,576 orbits around Earth.
• Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov traveled 72,553,920 miles, spent 171 days in space, and completed 2,736 orbits around Earth.
• Aleksandr Gorbunov completed his first spaceflight.
• Nick Hague has now logged a total of 374 days in space over two missions.
• Suni Williams has accumulated 608 days in space over three missions.
• Butch Wilmore has spent 464 days in space over three missions.

These records highlight the dedication and endurance required of astronauts participating in long-duration missions aboard the ISS.

The success of Crew-9 further strengthens NASA’s ability to sustain a human presence in low Earth orbit while laying the groundwork for more ambitious missions. The knowledge and experience gained from these missions contribute to NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the Moon and prepare for future crewed missions to Mars.

The successful return of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 marks another milestone in human spaceflight, demonstrating the capabilities of the Commercial Crew Program and the continued progress in space exploration.