Meet NASA-SpaceX Crew-9 astronauts who’ll fly back with Sunita Williams: One loves sci-fi, other wanted to be biologist

An American and a Russian astronaut will lead the NASA-SpaceX Crew-9 mission, tasked to bring back Starliner astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore from the International Space Station. NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov will fly aboard SpaceX Dragon 'Endurance' spacecraft atop the Falcon 9 rocket as part of this commercial crew mission.

After multiple delays, the SpaceX Crew-9 mission has now been scheduled to launch at 1:17pm ET or (10:47 pm Indian Standard Time) on Saturday, September 28, if weather permits.

The NASA-SpaceX crewed mission was initially scheduled for take-off on August 18 with four crew members. It was later postponed in the wake of technical issues detected with Boeing's Starliner that carried Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore to space on June 5.

In late August, NASA announced three big decisions to tackle the Starliner issue and the Crew-9 launch. These were: To downsize the Crew-9 mission from four to two astronauts, bring back an "uncrewed" or empty Starliner spacecraft and help Sunita and Butch fly back home on SpaceX Dragon craft in February 2025. Hague, Gorbunov, Wilmore, and Williams will return to Earth in February next year.

When will SpaceX Crew-9 mission launch? While Starliner is already back on Earth, NASA said that the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft is counting down to a "lift-off targeted for no earlier than 1:17 pm ET on Saturday, September 28, weather permitting". It will be a five-month mission. The duo will reach the space station at 5:30 pm ET on Sunday (it will be 3 am on Monday).

Astronauts Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbuno will steer the much-awaited launch. While Hague was appointed as commander of the mission, Gorbunov took the role of the mission specialist. Here's a deep dive into the profile and roles of Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov:

Nick Hague: Space experience, role in Crew-9 mission

Nick Hague is a NASA astronaut and US Space Force Colonel. He was selected by NASA as an astronaut in 2013. "It took me about 38 years before I was selected," Hague said in a podcast with NASA recently.

Background: A Kansas native, Hague holds a Bachelor of Science degree in astronautical engineering from the United States Air Force Academy, and a Master of Science degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2000. He enjoys exercise, flying, snow skiing and scuba.

Speaking about his childhood dream, Hague, "I love sci-fi and just this idea of going out and exploring was this childhood dream." He said "grew up on Star Wars and Star Trek" and watched Dr. Who.

Experience: NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission will be Hague's second spaceflight. His first mission to the International Space Station was in 2018, when he and his crewmate Alexey Ovchinin "experienced a catastrophic rocket booster malfunction that resulted in the launch abort of their Soyuz MS-10," NASA said. He was the first astronaut from his class to be assigned to a mission which launched on October 11, 2018.

In 2019, Hague re-launched on Soyuz MS-12 and served as Flight Engineer on the International Space Station for 203 days during Expedition 59 and 60. According to NASA, Hague conducted three spacewalks during his mission, totaling 19 hours and 56 minutes with a total of 203 days in space. He returned to Earth on October 4, 2019, along with the first United Arab Emirates astronaut Hazza Al Mansouri, who launched September 25, 2019 aboard the Soyuz MS-15.

Role: Hague will be serving as the commander of the NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission. Before NASA's decision to downsize the SpaceX crew, Hague was the pilot assigned for this mission. But now, he will take on the role of commander.

In a podcast with NASA, Hague said, "...we have to do the pilot and the commander role as a single person" as the SpaceX mission will be launching as a crew of two "without a pilot".

Aleksandr Gorbunov: Space experience, role in Crew-9 mission

Aleksandr Gorbunov is a Russian cosmonaut. He will embark on his first trip to the space station as a mission specialist for Crew-9. Gorbunov will be a flight engineer during Expedition 71/72 aboard the space station.

Background: Gorbunov was born in Zheleznogorsk, Kursk region, Russia. He studied engineering with qualifications in spacecraft and upper stages from the Moscow Aviation Institute. NASA informed that Gorbunov graduated from the military department with a specialty in operating and repairing aircraft, helicopters, and aircraft engines.

In the podcast, Aleksandr Gorbunov said he entered Moscow Aviation Institute where he studied spacecraft and upper stages. "And once I graduated, I was qualified as an engineer and I started my career at the RSC [Rocket Space Corp] Energia, a Russian manufacturer of spacecraft for Soyuz and Progress and also for the International Space Station…I worked there until 2018 when I was selected and joined the cosmonaut corps."

He also supported cargo spacecraft launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome.

Gorbunov said he wanted to be biologist and "the dream to become a cosmonaut came later when I was in high school".

Role: During the upcoming Crew-9 mission, mission specialist Gorbunov said he is planning to take a lot of pictures from windows on the International Space Station and has signed up for a lot of various scientific experiments. "I will work on ISS maintenance as well. And I think six months are going to be pretty busy," he said ahead of the Crew 9 launch.