- Two Russian cosmonauts and a NASA astronaut have returned from the International Space Station.
- Their six-month journey was marked by science experiments and crossovers with other astronaut crews.
- Check out NASA’s images of the Soyuz MS-17 spacecraft that landed on Saturday.
- Check out more stories on the Insider company page.
A six-month voyage aboard the International Space Station has come to an end for two Russian cosmonauts and a NASA astronaut: The three crew members returned safely to Earth amid clear skies at nearly 1:00 a.m. ET on Saturday.
The crew took off for the space station on October 14, 2020 in a Russian spacecraft called Soyuz MS-17. Their landing marked the end of Expedition 64, or the 64th long expedition to the ISS.
In total, the crew completed approximately 2,960 orbits.
The flight home took less than three and a half hours, with the spacecraft landing just outside the city of Dzhezkazgan in Kazakhstan. NASA captured footage of the crew’s smooth descent (from about an hour and 14 minutes in the video below):
Once the crew landed, Russian search and rescue teams rushed to help them leave. The crew commander, Russian cosmonaut Sergey Ryzhikov, emerged first from the spacecraft, followed by two flight engineers: NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and Russian cosmonaut Sergey Kud-Sverchkov.
From there, the crew underwent medical checks while seated in seats, allowing them to acclimate to Earth’s climate again. They could also call friends and family.
Rubins is now ready to fly home to Houston, Texas. Ryzhikov and Kud-Sverchkov return to their homes in Star City, Russia.
NASA ISS crew member Kathleen Rubins poses for a photo upon her return.
NASA / Bill Ingalls / Reuters
The departure of Soyuz MS-17 will make way for new astronauts on the ISS
Expedition 64 was the first time on board the ISS for Kud-Sverchkov, but the second time for Rubins and Ryzhikov.
Rubins, a microbiologist, became the first person to sequence DNA in space in 2016. She continued her DNA sequencing work on this latest mission, with the ultimate goal of helping astronauts diagnose diseases in space or eliminate microbes in the space. space station to see if they are causing health problems.
Rubins also completed two spacewalks, growing radishes in orbit, and photographing Hurricane Zeta as it approached Louisiana. To top it all off, she studied how changes in gravity affect cardiovascular cells – research that could provide clues about heart problems on Earth.
The ISS crew after landing outside Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan.
NASA / Bill Ingalls / Reuters
Ryzhikov and Kud-Sverchkov also conducted hundreds of scientific experiments on board the space station.
The crew also had some company: NASA’s SpaceX Crew-1 astronauts joined them in November and will stay until the end of April. That team consists of three NASA astronauts – Commander Mike Hopkins, pilot Victor Glover and mission specialist Shannon Walker – and astronaut Soichi Noguchi from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
Walker is now the station commander of Expedition 65, which began Friday.
Another Russian spacecraft, Soyuz MS-18, arrived on the ISS on April 9 with two Russian cosmonauts and a NASA astronaut on board.
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-2 will depart for the space station this Thursday, April 22, bringing the total number of people on board to 11. The ISS has detained no more than 13 people at a time.