Stranded
At least they're not alone down there.
At least they're not alone down there.
This comic is referencing the Boeing Starliner, which launched for its Crewed Flight Test on June 5th, 2024. The mission to the International Space Station was originally scheduled for only eight days, but at the comic’s release, August 28, 2024, the astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams were still "stranded" on the ISS, not expected to return to Earth until February 2025. They actually returned to Earth on March 18, 2025.
The comic points out that being stranded is a matter of perspective and circumstances; people on Earth could equally be considered "stranded", unable to get off the planet. Many science fiction stories deal with some sort of rush to evacuate the Earth, though there's usually a reason why they would wish to leave, a reason that's notably absent in the comic. Moreover, the proposed solution of one rocket would not be able to bring all 8 billion people on Earth to space.[1]
The comic is also referencing the fact that during press conferences, NASA has stressed that the Starliner astronauts are not actually stranded, because there are procedures for emergency returns to Earth. However, the current circumstances are not dire enough to warrant this emergency procedure.
The title text references commentators saying that at least the Starliner crew aren't alone up there, as there are currently nine people aboard the ISS, but flips it around to be about the (8 billion) people on Earth. Another funny take on the title text would be that in the turbulent times the fact that one is "stranded" like this might even be a benefit. The 8 billion people are also not alone in the sense there are numerous other species on Earth.
A comic with a similar premise is 2403: Wrapping Paper.
- ↑ Munroe, Randall. Everybody Out. xkcd What If? https://what-if.xkcd.com/7/