By Space.com
Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko and NASA astronaut Suni Williams shake hands during a change of command ceremony aboard the International Space Station, Sep. 22, 2024. (Image credit: NASA)
When assigned her original eight-day mission, she certainly didn't expect to taking over as commander of the International Space Station.
During what's known as a "change of command ceremony" aboard the International Space Station (ISS), Russian cosmonaut Olog Kononenko passed leadership of ISS Expedition 71 over to Williams, who arrived to the orbiting laboratory aboard Boeing's Starliner spacecraft in June.
It's an unexpected addition to Williams' already unusual visit to space; she and NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore both launched on Starliner's Crewed Flight Test (CFT), a mission initially expected to last about a week. Complications with the spacecraft's thrusters, however, meant the duo was booked into an extended stay aboard the station. This is because NASA and Boeing ultimately decided to return Starliner to Earth without its crew as a safety precaution. Williams and Wilmore will have to come home in February 2025 aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule.
"It has been a great time to work, and a great pleasure to work and spend time together here, as a big family onboard the space station," Kononenko said in an emotional address during the ceremony.
"I am leaving my second home, the space station, in Sunita's delicate hands," he added, as he handed a physical space station hatch key over to Williams.
Kononenko, along with fellow cosmonaut Nikolai Chub and NASA astronaut Tracy C. Dyson returned to Earth on Monday (Sep. 23) aboard the Soyuz MS-25 spacecraft, touching down in Kazakhstan during morning hours. The voyage wrapped up over a year in space for the two cosmonauts, and about six months for Dyson.
For Williams, taking command of the ISS adds to a list of unanticipated occurrences throughout her time in space.
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