SpaceX splashdown - Astronauts return home after six-month mission to the ISS

SpaceX splashdown - Astronauts return home after six-month mission to the ISS

The SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule carrying four astronauts splashed down off the coast of Florida, bringing their six-month mission to space to a successful conclusion.

When the astronauts strapped themselves into the Crew Dragon spacecraft yesterday shortly after 2 p.m. ET, their journey officially began. The capsule had been attached to the International Space Station since April, when it arrived with the crew. When the spacecraft reached the dense inner layer of Earth's atmosphere at approximately 10:30 p.m. Monday, it spent nearly nine hours slowly maneuvering through orbit before activating its thrusters to safely slice into the atmosphere, deploy parachutes, and splash down in the Gulf of Mexico.

Rescue ships awaited their arrival and escorted the four astronauts to safety: NASA's Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur, European Space Agency astronaut Thomas Pesquet, and Japan's Akihiko Hoshide, all of whom were from the United States.

It was heard on NASA's webcast shortly after splashdown that Kimbrough said, "It's wonderful to be back on Earth."

During their time in space, Kimbrough, McArthur, Pesquet, and Hoshide oversaw numerous scientific experiments and even tested the first chile peppers grown in space, which were grown by Kimbrough, McArthur, Pesquet, and Hoshide. They also took part in spacewalks, during which they don the iconic puffy white spacesuits and venture outside the space station to work on the station's exterior. They also overcame some terrifying obstacles, such as repairing the International Space Station after a new Russian module was attached and temporarily knocked it out of position.

One final stumbling block awaited the astronauts on their return journey: problems with the toilet on SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule left them without access to a bathroom facility. On the nine-hour journey, the crew was forced to rely on "undergarments," which are essentially adult diapers, to keep them comfortable.

During a remote press conference from the International Space Station on Friday, McArthur stated that using undergarments rather than the toilet is "suboptimal."

"However, we are prepared to deal with whatever comes our way," she said. "Numerous minor difficulties arise during spaceflight, making it a risky endeavor. The fact that this is just one of many obstacles that we will encounter and overcome during our mission does not worry us."

Kimbrough, McArthur, Pesquet, and Hoshide were able to return to Earth before the replacement crew could reach the International Space Station (ISS).

The partnership between NASA and SpaceX for their jointly operated International Space Station missions aims to keep the orbiting laboratory fully staffed and operational for the next 21 years while it is still in operation. A constant challenge for NASA during the nearly decade that the United States lacked a spacecraft capable of carrying astronauts into orbit was ensuring that there was always a sufficient crew onboard the spacecraft. Since retiring NASA's Space Shuttle program, the space agency has been forced to rely on its partnership with Russia and the Soyuz spacecraft built by the Russian space agency to transport astronauts from Earth to the International Space Station.

Weather concerns and a "minor medical issue" with one of the astronauts caused the launch of Crew-3, SpaceX's next astronaut mission, to be postponed two times. In a statement released last week, NASA stated that it expects the medical issue to be resolved prior to takeoff, which could occur as soon as Wednesday.

Also on the table is an agreement with Boeing, which was contracted alongside SpaceX to develop its own crew-rated spacecraft. However, Boeing has suffered a number of setbacks during its testing and development. At this point, its spacecraft, dubbed Starliner, has been in development for several years but has only recently been removed from the launch pad after problems with the vehicle's propulsion system were discovered shortly before a scheduled test flight was scheduled.