NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore have finally returned after being stranded on board the International Space Station for nine months.
The pair became stuck in June after Boeing's plagued Starliner spacecraft was deemed unfit to return them last summer due to a litany of technical problems.
After splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico, Williams and Wilmore were greeted by a curious pod of dolphins — a soothing experience after being thrown in the middle of a politically charged circus.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and president Donald Trump have turned the pair's return into a rallying cry, misleadingly blaming the many delays on the Biden administration and sparking an ugly spat between the billionaire and several former and current astronauts.
The unplanned welcome crew!
Crew-9 had some surprise visitors after splashing down this afternoon.🐬 pic.twitter.com/yuOxtTsSLV
— NASA's Johnson Space Center (@NASA_Johnson) March 18, 2025
In the end, the splashdown couldn't have gone more smoothly, with a sea mammalian committee ready to welcome them back home.
Drone footage shows dolphin fins popping up around the scorched, bullet-shaped Crew Dragon spacecraft as it bobs in the water.
"Here on your screen, we can see dolphins, actually, who want to come and play with Dragon," said webcast host and SpaceX quality systems engineering manager Kate Tice during Tuesday's livestream, as quoted by Business Insider.
For minutes, dolphins swam excitedly around the unusual craft while engineers prepared to haul Dragon onboard a nearby barge.
It's not just curious dolphins that have come extremely close to Dragon recovery proceedings. Following the splashdown of the first-ever crewed Dragon mission to the space station in 2020, Trump flag-waving boats approached the spacecraft to have a closer look, despite poisonous fumes hanging in the area.
"I think all of America was very anxious to see the capsule land in the water, but yeah, it’s something we need to do better next time," said NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine at the time.
"This lack of regard for safety is something that the Coast Guard takes very seriously," a Coast Guard spokesperson told the New York Times.
Fortunately, the dolphins didn't appear to be in danger while checking out the landed spacecraft.
"That was really fun to see," SpaceX Dragon mission management director Sarah Walker told reporters during a press call following splashdown.
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