SpaceX’s Dragon “Freedom” Crew-4 Spacecraft splashed down into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida early today morning.
SpaceX’s Dragon “Freedom” Spacecraft Crew-4 astronauts consisting of NASA astronauts Bob Hines, Kjell Lindgren, and Jessica Watkins, as well as Italian ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti landed safely off the coast of Jacksonville, Florida at 4:30 PM EDT (approximately 2:00 AM IST) after around 170 days in space. The return marks the fourth successful commercial attempt and mission to the International Space Station by SpaceX.
SpaceX’s Crew-4 splashed to Earth today after two failed attempts due to weather concerns, marking the end of nearly a six-month mission. The astronauts on board returned to earth on a parachute-assisted landing at 4:55 PM EDT. SpaceX recovery vessels retrieved the spacecraft and the astronauts. All astronauts upon reaching shore, are expected to fly to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, after which Cristoforetti will then return to Europe.
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson announced the following at their arrival: “Welcome home Crew-4! This international crew has spent nearly six months on the International Space Station conducting science for the benefit of all”. Their work onboard the orbiting laboratory, he continued, would help prepare future explorers in space, as they work and live on the space station. While it is an opportunity of a lifetime and a privilege, it requires sacrifices, he adds, “especially time away from loved ones. Kjell, Bob, Jessica, and Samantha, thank you for your contributions over the past six months to science, innovation, and discovery!” he continued.
The Crew-4 mission launched on April 27 at 3:52 EDT, set atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Crew-4 Dragon docked at the Harmony module’s port. The astronauts undocked from the same port at 12:05 p.m yesterday, to begin their trip back home.
The astronauts on board, Watkins, Cristoforetti, Hines, and Lindgren, have traveled 72,168,935 miles during their mission, spent a total of 170 days on the International Space Station, and have also completed 2,720 orbits around Earth. Lindgren logged in around 311 days in space over his two flights, and with the completion of their flight today, Cristoforetti makes a mark as she has now logged 369 days in space on her two flights, making her second for most days in space by a woman. However, the Crew-4 mission was a first-time experience for Hines and Watkins.
© NASA)
The Crew-4 astronauts participated in projects oriented toward research, maintenance, and technological demonstration during the entirety of the mission. Oleg Artemyev and Cristoforetti undertook two spacewalks for station maintenance and upgrades.
Crew-4’s major research work abroad in space consisted mainly of investigations on improvements in food diets, how space diets affect immune function and the gut microbiome, flammability of materials based on fuel temperature, effects on human hearing when exposed to equipment noise and microgravity, and whether the presence of additives increase or decrease the stability of emulsions, and possible microgravity induced changes in the human immune system such as aging, and the examination of an alternative to concrete, created from a material found on the lunar dust.
The spacecraft is expected to return to Florida for further examinations and processing at SpaceX’s Dragon Lair, where teams are set to examine the performance and data collected during and through the journey.
Crew-4 returns closely after SpaceX’s Crew-5 launch, which docked to the ISS on October 6.
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