A SpaceX Crew Dragon spaceship carrying Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams — alongside fellow American Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov — streaked through the atmosphere before deploying parachutes for a gentle splashdown off the Florida coast at 8.57 AEDT.

But issues with Starliner’s propulsion system led to cascading delays to their return home, culminating in a NASA decision to have them take a SpaceX craft back this year as part of the agency’s crew rotation schedule.

His continuous 371 days in space, ending in 2023, was the unexpected result of a coolant leak on a Russian spacecraft.

The astronaut pair launched into space as Starliner’s first crew in June last year for what was expected to be an eight-day test mission. Source: AP / AP

Wilmore and Williams had been doing scientific research and conducting routine maintenance with the station’s other five astronauts. Williams performed two six-hour spacewalks for maintenance outside the ISS, including one with Wilmore.

Williams told reporters earlier this month that she was looking forward to returning home to see her two dogs and family. “It’s been a roller coaster for them, probably a little bit more so than for us,” she said.