Four astronauts returned safely Monday from a record six-month science mission aboard the International Space Station, splashing with their SpaceX crew dragon The capsule in the Gulf of Mexico at the end of a day-long flight.
The Dragon vehicle, called Endeavor, was parachuted into the ocean off the Florida coast as planned after 10:30 p.m. EST on Monday (0330 GMT Tuesday), a reentry through Earth’s atmosphere. The entry was done live after the descent. NASA webcast.
Real-time infrared thermal video imaging caught a glimpse of the capsule swirling like a meteor in the night sky above the bay minutes before splashdown.
Applause was heard from the flight control center as the four main parachutes inflated atop the capsule, gusting to about 15 mph (24 kph) before drifting toward the surface of the gulf and falling gently into calm seas. were seen from
“Efforts, from SpaceX, welcome to Planet Earth,” a voice from the SpaceX Flight Control Center in suburban Los Angeles was heard saying to the crew as confirmation of a safe splashdown.
“It’s great to be back,” one of the astronauts radioed in response.
The return capped an orbital day of 199, the longest ever for an entire US-launched crew, according to Cathy Laiders, associate NASA chief for space operations. He said it surpassed the previous record of 168 days set by the preceding SpaceX-NASA mission earlier this year.
Within an hour of splashdown, the capsule was hoisted onto the deck of a recovery ship from the ocean, and four astronauts were seen one by one emerging from the hatch of Endeavor.
Two NASA astronauts in flight – Pilot Megano macarthur, 50, and mission commander Shane Kimbrough, 54 – The first two of the vehicle were outside. He was followed by a Japanese crew mate Akihiko Hoshide, 52, and fellow mission specialist Thomas Pesquet, 43, a French engineer for the European Space Agency.
Each glowing smile and a V-for-Victory signal as they awaited gurneys, which were unable to bear their weight immediately after months in microgravity. They were to undergo a brief medical check-up and were then taken ashore by helicopter.
furious re-entry
Operating autonomously, the spacecraft began its eight-hour return journey later in the day with a 90-minute fly-around of the space station as the crew snapped a series of survey photographs of the orbiting outpost, which showed an approximate was orbiting 250 miles (400 miles). km) up.
Crew Dragon then proceeded through a series of maneuvers during the day to bring it closer to Earth before its final night-time descent.
Propelled by a final ignition of its forward rocket thrusters for a “de-orbit burn”, the capsule re-entered the atmosphere at approximately 17,000 mph (27,359 kph) for a free-fall toward the ocean below, during which Crew communications were lost for several minutes.
The intense friction resulting from the capsule’s fall through the atmosphere slowed its descent, raising the temperature outside the vehicle to 3,500 °F (1,927 °C). The bottom of the capsule is covered by a shield that dissipates heat, preventing the spacecraft from being consumed.
The four astronauts were launched into orbit on April 23 atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
It was the third crew sent to the space station under NASA’s budding public-private partnership with SpaceX, the rocket company created in 2002 by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, who also co-founded the electric car maker. Tesla Inc.,
The returning team was designated “Crew 2” because it marks the second “operational” crew that NASA has launched on a SpaceX capsule since resuming manned space flights from American soil last year, the American After a nine-year hiatus at the end of space. Shuttle program in 2011.
The replacement team, “Crew 3”, was originally slated to fly to the space station in late October, but weather problems and an unspecified medical problem involving one of the four crew members failed that launch. has been delayed.
The Dragon vehicle, called Endeavor, was parachuted into the ocean off the Florida coast as planned after 10:30 p.m. EST on Monday (0330 GMT Tuesday), a reentry through Earth’s atmosphere. The entry was done live after the descent. NASA webcast.
Real-time infrared thermal video imaging caught a glimpse of the capsule swirling like a meteor in the night sky above the bay minutes before splashdown.
Applause was heard from the flight control center as the four main parachutes inflated atop the capsule, gusting to about 15 mph (24 kph) before drifting toward the surface of the gulf and falling gently into calm seas. were seen from
“Efforts, from SpaceX, welcome to Planet Earth,” a voice from the SpaceX Flight Control Center in suburban Los Angeles was heard saying to the crew as confirmation of a safe splashdown.
“It’s great to be back,” one of the astronauts radioed in response.
The return capped an orbital day of 199, the longest ever for an entire US-launched crew, according to Cathy Laiders, associate NASA chief for space operations. He said it surpassed the previous record of 168 days set by the preceding SpaceX-NASA mission earlier this year.
Within an hour of splashdown, the capsule was hoisted onto the deck of a recovery ship from the ocean, and four astronauts were seen one by one emerging from the hatch of Endeavor.
Two NASA astronauts in flight – Pilot Megano macarthur, 50, and mission commander Shane Kimbrough, 54 – The first two of the vehicle were outside. He was followed by a Japanese crew mate Akihiko Hoshide, 52, and fellow mission specialist Thomas Pesquet, 43, a French engineer for the European Space Agency.
Each glowing smile and a V-for-Victory signal as they awaited gurneys, which were unable to bear their weight immediately after months in microgravity. They were to undergo a brief medical check-up and were then taken ashore by helicopter.
furious re-entry
Operating autonomously, the spacecraft began its eight-hour return journey later in the day with a 90-minute fly-around of the space station as the crew snapped a series of survey photographs of the orbiting outpost, which showed an approximate was orbiting 250 miles (400 miles). km) up.
Crew Dragon then proceeded through a series of maneuvers during the day to bring it closer to Earth before its final night-time descent.
Propelled by a final ignition of its forward rocket thrusters for a “de-orbit burn”, the capsule re-entered the atmosphere at approximately 17,000 mph (27,359 kph) for a free-fall toward the ocean below, during which Crew communications were lost for several minutes.
The intense friction resulting from the capsule’s fall through the atmosphere slowed its descent, raising the temperature outside the vehicle to 3,500 °F (1,927 °C). The bottom of the capsule is covered by a shield that dissipates heat, preventing the spacecraft from being consumed.
The four astronauts were launched into orbit on April 23 atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
It was the third crew sent to the space station under NASA’s budding public-private partnership with SpaceX, the rocket company created in 2002 by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, who also co-founded the electric car maker. Tesla Inc.,
The returning team was designated “Crew 2” because it marks the second “operational” crew that NASA has launched on a SpaceX capsule since resuming manned space flights from American soil last year, the American After a nine-year hiatus at the end of space. Shuttle program in 2011.
The replacement team, “Crew 3”, was originally slated to fly to the space station in late October, but weather problems and an unspecified medical problem involving one of the four crew members failed that launch. has been delayed.
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