Featured Image Credit: NASA
Topics: NASA, International Space Station, Elon Musk
Joe Yates
After Elon Musk claimed last month that the NASA's astronauts stuck in space are only still there for 'political reasons', the pair have finally responded.
Almost 300 days ago, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams set of on what was supposed to be just an eight-day mission, flying to the International Space Station (ISS) when they encountered several problems with the capsule after they set off.
The Boeing Starliner they made their commute in experienced five helium leaks, five maneuvering thrusters go dead and a propellant valve failing to close completely.
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They are aboard the ISS alongside other astronauts, with NASA scrambling for an alternate means to get them home.
They've been in space for 274 days to date, having launched on June 5, 2024, and I'm sure the father-of-two Wilmore will be itching to get back to see his kids, while Williams will want to see her own family.
So, what has Musk said then?
"They were left up there for political reasons, which is not good," he said to Fox News, in a joint interview with President Trump.
Musk continued: "Well, we don't want to be complacent, but we have brought astronauts back from the space station many times before, and always with success."
Also weighing in, Trump said that his predecessor Joe Biden was 'going to leave them in space'.
The duo failed to elaborate on how and why Biden might have left Williams and Wilmore up in space for political advantage.
Now, Wilmore has spoken out on the claims made by Musk and Trump.
"Obviously we've heard some of these different things that have been said, I can tell you at the outset we have all of us have the utmost respect for Mr Musk and obviously respect and admiration for our President of the United States Donald Trump," the patriot said during a press conference.
He continued: "The words they've said 'politics', I mean that's part of life, we understand that.
"We know what we've lived up here, we know the the ins and outs and the specifics that they may not be privy to - and I'm sure that they have some issues that they are dealing with, information that they have that we are not privy to."
Before later saying: "I can only say that Mr Musk, what he says is absolutely factual - I have no, we have no, information on that though whatsoever, what was offered, what was, what was not offered, who it was offered to, how that process went.
"That's information that we simply don't have so, I believe him. I don't know all those details and I don't think any of us really can give you the answer that maybe that you would be hoping for."
SpaceX is set to bring the two NASA astronauts home in the near future — nine months later than planned.
NASA said in a recent update: "NASA and SpaceX are accelerating the target launch and return dates for the upcoming crew rotation missions to and from the International Space Station.
"The agency’s Crew-10 launch now is targeting Wednesday, March 12, pending mission readiness and completion of the agency’s certification of flight readiness process. The Crew-9 mission is planned for return to Earth following a several day handover period with the newly arrived Crew-10 expedition crew."
UNILAD has contacted Biden for a comment.