Breaking News: SpaceX Crew-7 Successfully Splashes Down After Completing Mission!

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 SpaceX Crew-7 Successfully Splashes Down After Completing Mission



Four astronauts from different space agencies have returned to Earth after nearly six months in space as part of Expedition 70 aboard the International Space Station. They landed in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Florida and were seen inside the SpaceX Dragon Endurance spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN. Credit goes to NASA/Joel Kowsky.

Introduction

After spending 199 days in orbit, NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 safely returned home, splashing down off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, on Tuesday. The international crew of four, consisting of NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov, returned to Earth at 5:47 a.m. EDT. The spacecraft was retrieved by teams aboard SpaceX recovery vessels, and the crew will now fly to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

An International Mission for Space Exploration

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson praised the crew for their work, commenting on the importance of international cooperation in space exploration. He said, “This international crew showed that space unites us all. We can do more – we can learn more – when we work together. The science experiments conducted during their time in space will help prepare for NASA’s bold missions at the Moon, Mars, and beyond, all while benefiting humanity here on Earth.”


The Crew-7 mission lifted off on a Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on August 26, 2023. About 30 hours later, Dragon docked to the Harmony module’s space-facing port. The crew undocked at 11:20 a.m. on March 11 to begin the trip home.


A Mission of Milestones

Moghbeli, Mogensen, Furukawa, and Borisov completed 3,184 orbits around Earth, traveling a total of 84,434,094 miles during their mission. The Crew-7 mission was the first spaceflight for Moghbeli and Borisov. Mogensen has logged 209 days in space over his two flights, and Furukawa has logged 366 days in space over his two flights.


The crew contributed to numerous experiments and technology demonstrations, including the first study of human response to different spaceflight durations and an experiment growing food on the space station. Moghbeli also conducted a spacewalk, replacing one of the 12 trundle bearing assemblies on the port solar alpha rotary joint, which allows the arrays to track the Sun and generate electricity to power the station.


The Endurance of the Dragon Spacecraft

This was the third flight of the Dragon spacecraft, named Endurance, which also supported the Crew-3 and Crew-5 missions. The spacecraft will now return to Florida for inspection and processing at SpaceX’s refurbishing facility at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, where teams will inspect the Dragon, analyze data on its performance, and process it for its next flight.


The Commercial Crew Program
The Crew-7 flight is part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, which aims to provide safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from the International Space Station and low Earth orbit. The program has already provided additional research time and increased the opportunity for discovery aboard humanity’s microgravity testbed for exploration, including helping NASA prepare for human exploration of the Moon and Mars.


Conclusion

The safe return of Crew-7 marks another milestone for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program and its continued efforts to explore the vast expanse of space. Through international cooperation and groundbreaking research, we continue to unlock the mysteries of the universe and pave the way for future generations of space explorers.




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