This was the landing of the four astronauts of the Crew Dragon “Endurance” after six months in space

2024-03-13 01:06:00
The return of the team, composed of Jasmin Moghbeli, Andreas Mogensen of the European Space Agency, Japanese astronaut Satoshi Furukawa and cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov, marked the end of a space mission that managed to complete 3,184 orbits around the planet. (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani/REUTERS)

During the early hours of this Tuesday, March 12, four astronauts from the International Space Station (ISS) returned to Earth, marking the end of a six-month mission that spanned 3,184 orbits and some 135.9 million kilometers traveled.

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The Crew Dragon “Endurance” capsule, which carried the crew composed of Commander Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen, Japanese Satoshi Furukawa and cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov, touched the waters of the Gulf of Mexico south of Pensacola, Florida, at 05:47 am Eastern Time, as confirmed by The Associated Press news agency.

The return “home” began Monday when “Endurance” undocked from the International Space Station. The crew of Crew 7, after saying goodbye to their colleagues on the ISS, plotted their path back to Earth under a meticulous automated process that reduced their speed by approximately 341 kilometers per hour with a 13.5-minute thruster burn, preparing them for its atmospheric entry and subsequent calm descent towards the surface of the planet.

The Crew Dragon “Endurance” capsule landed in the Gulf of Mexico early this Tuesday, February 12. (Keegan Barber/NASA/AP)

In the meantime, a change of command ceremony was held on the ISS, where Mogensen handed over responsibility to Oleg Kononenko, now celebrated for achieving an accumulated time record in the space of 916 days. “There is no one more experienced than you when it comes to the International Space Station. I leave her in the best possible hands,” said Mogensen. Kononenko, at 916 days in space, is heading toward the 1,000-day mark, and by the end of his current mission, he will have surpassed three years in space.

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Meanwhile, the ISS welcomed the Crew 8 crew, which arrived aboard Soyuz MS-24/70S in September 2023. This new crew, composed of Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, Jeanette Epps and Alexander Grebenkin, joined already residents Oleg Kononenko, Nikolai Chub and NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara.

On March 21, Soyuz MS-25/71S is expected to arrive with Oleg Novitskiy, Belarusian guest cosmonaut Marina Vasilevskaya and NASA astronaut Tracy Dyson on board, marking another personnel turnover in this pillar of scientific research. in Earth orbit.

Minutes after splashdown, the first medical checkups were carried out on the astronauts, who showed an optimal state of health and high spirits. (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani/REUTERS)

During atmospheric reentry, the capsule could be observed following a trajectory from the west to the southeastern United States, offering spectators on a path that extended from Nebraska to Mississippi the opportunity to glimpse the craft like a shooting star.

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The mission culminated with a gentle landing in conditions of calm winds and calm seas, thanks to the deceleration provided by four huge parachutes. “It has been a spectacular journey and the return has been no less impressive,” said the SpaceX recovery team, the company behind this feat, who quickly got the crew and capsule to safety aboard their recovery ship.

According to CBS News, just fifty minutes after splashdown, the astronauts were taken on stretchers for initial medical checkups, a normal practice for those returning from long stays in microgravity. All four were observed to be in good health and in high spirits as they began their readjustment to gravity.

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