ISS astronauts on eight-day mission may be stuck until 2025, Nasa says

Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams. The pair, who left for an eight-day mission on Boeing’s Starliner capsule in June, may return on SpaceX’s crew dragon next year, Nasa says. Photograph: NASA

Two US astronauts who blasted into space for an eight-day mission in June may be stuck on the International Space Station until next year if their Boeing Starliner cannot be repaired for them to return home, Nasa has said.

Nasa officials on Wednesday said astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who became the first crew to fly Boeing’s Starliner capsule, could return on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon in February 2025 if Starliner is still deemed unsafe to return to Earth.