Astronauts stranded in space: Unexpected eight-month stay highlights the risks of space exploration, experts say - Northeastern University College of Science

Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams took off for the International Space Station in June. The test flight aboard Boeing’s Starliner was supposed to last a week, but they have yet to return.

Helium leaks and issues with the control thrusters were discovered with the spacecraft, making a safe return to Earth impossible, according to NASA.

Instead, the pair will return to Earth with the crew of an upcoming SpaceX mission, which means they will not be back until February.

But a weeklong trip turning into an eight-month journey is par for the course when it comes to space exploration, Northeastern University experts say.

“Space flight has always been a little bit messy, a little bit chaotic not by definition, but by design,” says Jacqueline McCleary, a cosmology expert and assistant professor of physics at Northeastern. “The way I look at this, this is one bump in the road on mankind’s long, inevitable path to the stars.”