NASA astronauts who were stuck in space say international attention good for space exploration

Two NASA astronauts stuck in space for over nine months looked on the bright side, saying all the international attention on their mission will be good for future space exploration.

NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore had prepared for an eight-day Starliner test flight part of the SpaceX Crew-9 mission. But things didn't go as planned. Instead of eight days, they spent more than nine months aboard the International Space Station.

The pair spoke to reporters during a news conference Monday from Houston. Once back the ground, the two prepared to adjust to gravity, but their first thoughts were about family and food.

"I wanted to hug my husband and hug my dogs – and I'll say in that order," Williams said. She said she ate a grilled cheese sandwich that reminded her of her father.

Despite repeated extensions and delays, both astronauts said they'd fly on the Starliner again, with an aim to apply the lessons they learned from the mission.

"Because we're going to rectify all the issues that we encountered," Wilmore said. "We're going to fix it. We're going to make it work. Boeing's completely committed. NASA is completely committed. And with that, I'd get on in a heartbeat."

Wilmore and Williams spent 286 days in space before they splashed down off Florida's Gulf Coast.

Asked who was to blame, Wilmore said everyone – from Boeing to NASA – carries some responsibility. He also said that as commander of crew flight test, he was partly "culpable" for not asking questions before the June 5 launch.

"I'll admit that to the nation. There's things that I did not ask that I should have asked. I didn't know at the time that I needed to ask them," he said. "But in hindsight, the signals, some of the signals were there."

Both expressed gratitude for the NASA teams and others who helped them return safely to Earth.

Williams and Wilmore traveled 121,347,491 miles during the mission and completed 4,576 orbits around Earth. The two crew members conducted more than 150 scientific experiments.

The Crew-9 flight was part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program. Its return to Earth came after NASA's SpaceX Crew-10 launch. Crew-10 docked at the station on March 16, starting another science expedition.