Highlights: Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore spent 286 days in space, orbiting Earth 4,576 times

NASA astronaut Sunita Williams being taken out of SpaceX Dragon capsule.

Sunita Williams Highlights: Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore have safely returned to Earth after spending over nine months in space due to unexpected delays. Their spacecraft, SpaceX’s Dragon, successfully splashed down off the Florida coast, marking the end of a mission that captured global attention. They left the International Space Station earlier in the morning after exchanging final farewells and hugs with remaining crew members.

Their SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule named Freedom is gearing to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere. Its heat shield must endure scorching temperatures of around 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit (1,650 degrees Celsius) before the capsule can deploy its parachutes and splash down off the coast of Florida, near Tallahassee, at 5.57 pm ET on Tuesday (3:27 am IST, Wednesday).

Sunita Williams return | Key points

-Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore spent 286 days on the International Space Station, where they conducted over 4500 orbits and travelled more than 121 million statute miles

-The crew will undergo NASA's 45-day post-mission rehabilitation program is designed to help astronauts recover from the physical effects of spaceflight.

-Their return was scheduled to begin initially on Wednesday night, but NASA postponed the journey as unfavourable weather are expected to prevail later in the week.

-‘Butch and Suni’ travelled to the ISS in June last year for a scheduled eight-day mission. They were forced to stay as the Boeing Starliner capsule developed issues with its propulsion system.

-The duo was the first crew to fly Boeing's Starliner in a test flight. The faulty capsule returned to Earth last September.

-US President Donald Trump and his close adviser Elon Musk - SpaceX's CEO - have sought to blame, without evidence, former President Joe Biden for the astronauts' plight.