NASA SpaceX Crew-2 Mission Spashdown Is Complete. 4 Astronauts Are Back After 200 Days In Space

The four Crew-2 astronauts returned to Earth in SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft called Endeavour, and softly splashed down off the coast of Florida

New Delhi: NASA astronauts Megan McArthur and Shane Kimbrough, ESA's Thomas Pesquet, and JAXA astronaut Akihiko Hoshide splashed down safely in the Gulf of Mexico on Monday, November 8, at 10:33 pm ET (Tuesday, November 9 at 9:03 IST) after a productive six-month stay aboard the International Space Station. 

The four astronauts returned to Earth in SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft called Endeavour, and softly splashed down off the coast of Florida. 

Shane Kimbrough served as mission commander, and Megan McArthur was mission pilot, while Thomas Pesquet and Akihiko Hoshide were mission specialists.

Crew-2 Mission Timeline

Endeavour undocked from the ISS at around 12:35 am IST, and took a loop around the station. This was the first-ever 360 degree flight around the ISS for any Crew Dragon spacecraft. 

As Endeavour entered its final leg around the ISS, it passed over the east coast of Japan. During its flyaround of the space station, Endeavour completed four departure burns. 

The deorbit burn of Endeavour began at around 8:09 am IST, and lasted about 16 minutes, according to NASA.

Around 35 minutes before splashdown, Dragon's nose cone closed. Four main parachutes helped Dragon to splash down.

At 9:40 am IST, NASA tweeted that Crew Dragon Endeavour had been successfully lifted out of the water, and was placed in the "Dragon's Nest" aboard the recovery vessel.

Crew-2 Mission Milestones

The Crew-2 astronauts and Dragon spent 199 days in orbit. Dragon is the first US spacecraft to reach that milestone. 

Last year, Dragon completed the Demo-2 Mission, which lasted 63 days. This means Dragon has clocked more than 260 days in space.

During their time aboard the ISS, the Crew-2 astronauts perfomed more than 300 experiments.

The Crew-2 astronauts also witnessed the first film shoot in space, when Russian actress Yulia Peresild, and director Klim Shipenko went to the ISS early October to film the movie, 'The Challenge'.

The Crew-2 astronauts had also experienced a harrowing event when the space station rotated by 70 degrees in mid-October. 

"Smiles, thumbs up, and peace signs. The SpaceX Crew-2 astronauts are happy to be home after six months in space.", NASA tweeted.