It was supposed to be an easy eight-day mission to the International Space Station and back, but we imagine it wasn't long until astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore realized their jolly jaunt into the stars was going to take a lot longer.
The pair of NASA astronauts blasted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on June 5, 2024, but little did they know that they wouldn't splash down off the coast of Tallahassee until March 18, 2025.
Williams and Wilmore were immediately rushed off on stretchers, with them supposedly being thrown straight into a 'brutal' 45-day rehab. Despite fears that their extended stay in space could lead to some lifetime health issues, NASA says that most return to their pre-flight fitness within 45 days. Admittedly, there's an added caveat that says: "Some crew members subjectively indicated the need for a longer rehabilitation period."
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Now, Wilmore's wife has updated us on his condition. Speaking to WVLT-TV, Deanna Wilmore said that her husband has been lying low at home and spending most of his day watching March Madness. She added: "Barry does say gravity is not his friend right now. And you know the stamina is not there, and so they do have to rest and relax quite a bit because they’re just not strong yet."
He's still undergoing tests with NASA (as per the planned regime) but is firmly back home in Texas. The report says that despite Wilmore's fatigue, he's still going to work daily and exercising to try and gain back some of his strength.
Without Earth's gravity, astronauts can typically expect muscle atrophy and bone density loss. NASA warns: "Without Earth's gravity affecting the human body, weight-bearing bones lose on average 1% to 1.5% of mineral density per month during spaceflight. Astronauts also lose muscle mass in microgravity faster than they would on Earth."
With Williams and Wilmore being in space for three months longer than the average mission time, it wouldn't be a surprise if they take a little longer to recover. Still, their time up there falls some 100 days short of Francisco 'Frank' Rubio’s trip to the cosmos in 2022.
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Although Wilmore’s family got to speak to him on a daily call from space, the fact he missed birthdays, anniversaries, and Christmas clearly took its toll. His wife and daughter, Logan, were overjoyed to have him home and said what happened when they got a few brief moments with him after landing. According to Deanna, it was "not a lot of talking, just a lot of hugging and enjoying the moment."
Another daughter, Daryn, took to TikTok to explain how her father is doing. Responding to one question, she said: "He's doing good. It's rough, but he's a trooper."
Even before the astronauts landed, there were fears for the health of Williams, with many shocked by her appearance and NASA having to repeatedly remind us that women tend to deal with space differently than men.
Thankfully, both sound like they're getting the best care they can and are enjoying some quiet time with their families when not being put through the wringer by NASA's testing.