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Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams will return to earth on a SpaceX<\/a> Dragon capsule in February instead of the Boeing<\/a> Starliner that they used to reach the International Space Station.<\/p>\n NASA Administrator Bill Nelson\u00a0delivered the news during a briefing on Saturday, ending months of speculation over how much longer the astronauts would remain in limbo.<\/p>\n The Starliner will instead return to earth from the ISS<\/a> without a crew, allowing NASA and Boeing to determine root causes of its malfunctions so it can continue to serve as a piece of the space agency\u2019s plans to maintain access to the ISS, he added.<\/p>\n \u201cSpaceflight is risky even at its safest and even at its most routine. And a test flight by nature is neither safe nor routine,\u201d Nelson said, adding that \u201cour core value is safety, and it is our North Star.\u201d<\/p>\n The two astronauts have been aboard the ISS since June while the original plan was for the mission to last just eight days.\u00a0The test flight marked the first time Boeing\u2019s Starliner carried astronauts after earlier tests were unscrewed.<\/p>\n But a\u00a0helium leak and thruster malfunctions<\/a>\u00a0on the Starliner has kept them in space for months while NASA and Boeing considered ways to being them back. Despite the months-long delay, NASA has maintained that the astronauts are\u00a0not \u201cstranded\u201d<\/a> on the ISS. <\/p>\n \u201cThe bottom line relative to bringing Starliner back is there was just too much uncertainty in the prediction of the thrusters,\u201d Steve Stich, program manager for\u00a0NASA\u2019s\u00a0Commercial Crew program, said Saturday, pointing to the undock procedure, de-orbit burn, and separation sequence. \u201cIt was just too much risk for the crew.\u201d<\/p>\n The Starliner will undock and land in early September. Meanwhile, the SpaceX mission that will bring Williams and Wilmore back\u2014dubbed Crew 9\u2014is due to launch in late September carrying two astronauts, leaving two other seats available for Williams and Wilmore, according to NASA.<\/p>\n They will return months later, pushing their total time in space to eight months, if all goes according to plan. With their extra time in orbit, Williams and Wilmore will continue to perform experiments and maintenance. <\/p>\n While NASA\u2019s choice to use a SpaceX capsule instead of the Starliner is a blow to Boeing, Norm Knight, director of NASA spaceflight operations, said the Starliner is a \u201crobust\u201d vehicle with \u201cexcellent flying qualities\u201d and has performed well overall. <\/p>\n On Aug. 2, Boeing said it was confident that its spacecraft would be able to being back Williams and Wilmore. But on Aug. 7, NASA revealed that discussions had evolved, saying it was more seriously considering SpaceX\u2019s Crew Dragon vehicle, which has been taking astronauts to and from the ISS for four years.<\/p>\n But complicating NASA\u2019s decision Saturday to use SpaceX is the fact that the spacesuits that Wilmore and Williams have are compatible with the Starliner but not with the Dragon capsule<\/a>. <\/p>\n That\u2019s a feature of a major shift in NASA\u2019s strategy launched a decade ago, when the space agency decided to rely more on the burgeoning private-sector industry.<\/p>\n After the space shuttle fleet was retired, NASA awarded Boeing and SpaceX contracts in 2014 to take astronauts to and from space. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\nRecommended Newsletter: <\/strong>High-level insights for high-powered executives. Subscribe to the CEO Daily newsletter for free today. Subscribe now<\/a>.<\/div>\n