VIDEO: NASA astronauts Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore welcome SpaceX Crew-10 team to ISS

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore welcomed SpaceX Crew-10 team at the International Space Station (ISS) around 11:15 am IST on Sunday.

NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov entered the ISS shortly after opening the hatches between the space station and the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft.

McClain, Ayers, Onishi, and Peskov were welcomed by the Expedition 72 crew, including NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Don Petitt, Suni Williams, and Butch Wilmore, as well as Roscosmos cosmonauts Aleksandr Gorbunov, Alexey Ovchinin, and Ivan Vagner.

The hatch-opening ceremony took place hours after the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft carrying four astronauts docked to the ISS. The docking took place around 9:15 am IST on Sunday.

Sunita Williams said it was a "wonderful day" and "great to see our friends arrive," speaking shortly after her colleges emerged onto the orbital lab.

Why is SpaceX Crew-10 mission important?

The SpaceX Crew-10 mission is significant as it paves the way for the return of Crew-9 and astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore from space. Sunita and Butch have been in space for the past nine months.

The NASA duo's Starliner had returned to Earth empty, without experiencing further major issues – leaving them in space for nine months after what was meant to have been a days-long roundtrip.

Following a brief handover period between Crew-10 and Crew-9, Hague, Williams, Wilmore, and Gorbunov will return to Earth no earlier than Wednesday, March 19, NASA said.

“Ahead of Crew-9’s departure from station, mission teams will review weather conditions at the splashdown sites off the coast of Florida,” the US space agency added.

NASA had earlier said the Crew-9 will return only after Crew-10 to launch to the ISS.

The number of crew aboard the space station will increase to 11 people before Crew-9 members Hague, Williams, Wilmore, and Gorbunov return to Earth following the crew handover period.