Known across the globe as the stuck astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams hit the six-month mark in space Thursday, December 5 with two more to go.

The pair rocketed into orbit on June 5, the first to ride Boeing's new Starliner crew capsule on what was supposed to be a weeklong test flight. They arrived at the International Space Station the next day, only after overcoming a cascade of thruster failures and helium leaks. NASA deemed the capsule too risky for a return flight, so it will be February before their long and trying mission comes to a close.

While NASA managers bristle at calling them stuck or stranded, the two retired Navy captains shrug off the description of their plight. They insist they're fine and accepting of their fate. Wilmore views it as a detour of sorts: "We're just on a different path."

"I like everything about being up here," Williams told students Wednesday from an elementary school named for her in Needham, Massachusetts, her hometown. "Just living in space is super fun."

'Mindset' goes a long way

Both astronauts have lived up there before so they quickly became full-fledged members of the crew, helping with science experiments and chores like fixing a broken toilet, vacuuming the air vents and watering the plants. Williams took over as station commander in September.

"Mindset does go a long way," Wilmore said in response to a question from Nashville first-graders in October. He's from Mount Juliet, Tennessee. "I don't look at these situations in life as being downers."

Boeing flew its Starliner capsule home empty in September, and NASA moved Wilmore and Williams to a SpaceX flight not due back until late February. Two other astronauts were bumped to make room and to keep to a six-month schedule for crew rotations.

Like other station crews, Wilmore and Williams trained for spacewalks and any unexpected situations that might arise.

"When the crews go up, they know they could be there for up to a year," said NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free.