SpaceX capsule begins rescue mission to return stranded astronauts

SpaceX has launched its mission to bring back two astronauts stranded on the International Space Station (ISS) since June.

The Dragon capsule, which has two empty seats for Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida on Saturday.

The pair’s mission at the space station had only been expected to last about eight days but after a fault was found on the new Boeing Starliner it returned to Earth empty as a precaution.

Nasa astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov are flying with fresh supplies for Butch and Suni and expect to bring them home in February.

The Dragon launch had been scheduled for Thursday but was delayed because of Hurricane Helene, which has left a trail of destruction through Florida, north through Georgia and into Tennessee and the Carolinas.

SpaceX, founded by billionaire Elon Musk, has been ferrying crews to and from the ISS every six months.

The Dragon is expected to dock with the ISS on Sunday at around 21:30 GMT.

Under a contract between Nasa and Roscosmos, the Russian federal space agency, three-seat Russian Soyuz spacecraft carry one Nasa astronaut on each flight to the ISS and a cosmonaut flies on each four-seat Dragon.