Sunita Williams returns home: Why NASA astronauts opted for splashdown instead of landing on solid ground? NASA Crew-9 astronauts Sunita Williams, Nick Hague, Butch Wilmore, and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov breathed earthly air for the first time in over nine months on Wednesday after the successful splashdown of SpaceX's Dragon capsule. California: After a nine-month ordeal in the space, the Dragon spacecraft successfully splashed down off Florida coast, bringing NASA astronaut Sunita Williams along with Crew-9 members Butch Wilmore, Nick Hague, and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov safely to Earth. Now, have you ever wondered why the NASA astronauts opted for…