A Brief History of All the Times We've Accidentally Trapped Astronauts in Space

Right now, two astronauts are unexpectedly stranded on the International Space Station (ISS). Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams took off on June 5 as the first astronauts on Boeing’s Starliner (not to be confused with SpaceX’s Starship). They launched successfully, reached the ISS the same day, and planned to stay for about a week before returning home in the same spacecraft. But the Starliner had different plans. Now, almost a month later, and after dealing with some leaks and minor issues with the capsule, the duo is still stuck—well, sort of stuck—on the ISS. Mark Nappi, Boeing’s vice president for its Commercial Crew Program, said in a press call that Wilmore and Williams are “not stuck on ISS. The crew is not in any danger and there’s no increased risk when we decide to bring Suni and Butch back to Earth.” Steve Stich, NASA’s commercial crew program manager, agreed, saying that “Butch and Suni are not stranded in space.” And that’s technically true. “Astronauts Temporarily Delayed on the ISS” is a less exciting, but more accurate, headline than “Astronauts Stuck in Space.” Even if the Starliner were to completely fizzle out, another craft could be sent to bring the astronauts home. While it might not be great for Boeing, the astronauts will probably be fine. But space has a way of throwing curveballs, and this isn’t the first time astronauts have had to hang around a little longer than expected. From minor mishaps to dramatic rescues, here are the most memorable moments when space missions didn’t exactly go as planned. [View in Browser]( [Popular Mechanics]( [SHOP]( [EXCLUSIVE]( [SUBSCRIBE]( [A Brief History of All the Times We've Accidentally Trapped Astronauts in Space]( [A Brief History of All the Times We've Accidentally Trapped Astronauts in Space]( [A Brief History of All the Times We've Accidentally Trapped Astronauts in Space]( Right now, two astronauts are unexpectedly stranded on the International Space Station (ISS). Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams took off on June 5 as the first astronauts on Boeing’s Starliner (not to be confused with SpaceX’s Starship). They launched successfully, reached the ISS the same day, and planned to stay for about a week before returning home in the same spacecraft. But the Starliner had different plans. Now, almost a month later, and after dealing with some leaks and minor issues with the capsule, the duo is still stuck—well, sort of stuck—on the ISS. Mark Nappi, Boeing’s vice president for its Commercial Crew Program, said in a press call that Wilmore and Williams are “not stuck on ISS. The crew is not in any danger and there’s no increased risk when we decide to bring Suni and Butch back to Earth.” Steve Stich, NASA’s commercial crew program manager, agreed, saying that “Butch and Suni are not stranded in space.” And that’s technically true. “Astronauts Temporarily Delayed on the ISS” is a less exciting, but more accurate, headline than “Astronauts Stuck in Space.” Even if the Starliner were to completely fizzle out, another craft could be sent to bring the astronauts home. While it might not be great for Boeing, the astronauts will probably be fine. But space has a way of throwing curveballs, and this isn’t the first time astronauts have had to hang around a little longer than expected. From minor mishaps to dramatic rescues, here are the most memorable moments when space missions didn’t exactly go as planned. Right now, two astronauts are unexpectedly stranded on the International Space Station (ISS). Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams took off on June 5 as the first astronauts on Boeing’s Starliner (not to be confused with SpaceX’s Starship). They launched successfully, reached the ISS the same day, and planned to stay for about a week before returning home in the same spacecraft. But the Starliner had different plans. Now, almost a month later, and after dealing with some leaks and minor issues with the capsule, the duo is still stuck—well, sort of stuck—on the ISS. Mark Nappi, Boeing’s vice president for its Commercial Crew Program, said in a press call that Wilmore and Williams are “not stuck on ISS. The crew is not in any danger and there’s no increased risk when we decide to bring Suni and Butch back to Earth.” Steve Stich, NASA’s commercial crew program manager, agreed, saying that “Butch and Suni are not stranded in space.” And that’s technically true. “Astronauts Temporarily Delayed on the ISS” is a less exciting, but more accurate, headline than “Astronauts Stuck in Space.” Even if the Starliner were to completely fizzle out, another craft could be sent to bring the astronauts home. While it might not be great for Boeing, the astronauts will probably be fine. But space has a way of throwing curveballs, and this isn’t the first time astronauts have had to hang around a little longer than expected. From minor mishaps to dramatic rescues, here are the most memorable moments when space missions didn’t exactly go as planned. 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