Crew lifts off to replace NASA stranded astronauts

The crew set to replace two astronauts stranded in space for nine months successfully launched this Friday.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket took off from Florida, carrying four passengers who will replace Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

NASA is now awaiting the crew swap, after which Wilmore and Williams could finally return to Earth next week—weather permitting.

Originally, the pair was only supposed to spend eight days in orbit, but their Boeing Starliner capsule suffered helium leaks and thruster failures, making their return impossible.

NASA eventually brought the Starliner back to Earth empty and planned a SpaceX return mission for the astronauts in February. However, a capsule issue caused another delay, pushing their return to mid-March.

(QG - Source : The Guardian - Picture : © Unsplash)