Historic SpaceX Crew-10 Launch: Bringing Stranded NASA Astronauts Home

NASA and SpaceX launched Crew-10 to the International Space Station, replacing astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who've been aboard for nine months after the Starliner malfunction. The mission is politically charged with President Trump's push for an expedited plan, involving astronauts from the US, Japan, and Russia.

In a highly anticipated move, NASA and SpaceX launched the Crew-10 mission Friday evening from Florida's Kennedy Space Center, set to bring home U.S. astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams from the International Space Station. Stuck on the orbiting lab since June after a flawed debut of Boeing's Starliner capsule, the duo has been awaiting replacement by a new team.

The Crew-10 mission itself, while a standard crew rotation, took on more significance due to delays and political undercurrents with influence from President Donald Trump and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. While previously scheduled for later, the mission was expedited with a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, amid claims that the astronauts were left stranded for political motives.

The crew, now aboard the ISS, includes NASA's Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, Japanese astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Russian cosmonaut Kirill Peskov. However, the launch was not without last-minute hurdles, like addressing spaceflight hardware issues and navigating an unusual preparation flow due to external pressures.

(With inputs from agencies.)