EFEMiami
2 May 2021
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company s Dragon spacecraft launches for NASA s SpaceX Crew-1 mission, to the International Space Station, at the John F. Kennedy Space Center, on Merritt Island, Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA, 15 November 2020. EPA-EFE FILE/CJ GUNTHER
Members of the Crew-1 mission, Soichi Noguchi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (L) NASA Mission specialist Shannon Walker (2L), NASA pilot Victor Glover (2R) and NASA Crew Dragon commander Michael Hopkins (R) arrive at the John F. Kennedy Space Center in preparation for their upcoming mission into space, on Merritt Island, Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA, 08 November 2020. EPA-EFE FILE/CJ GUNTHER
2021-05-02 10:05:42 GMT2021-05-02 18:05:42(Beijing Time) Xinhua English
WASHINGTON, May 2 (Xinhua) The SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft carrying four Crew-1 astronauts parachuted into the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida early Sunday, completing a six-month mission to the International Space Station (ISS).
The spacecraft, named Resilience, splashed down at 2:56 a.m. Eastern Time (0656 GMT) Sunday.
The Crew-1 mission, which consists of NASA astronauts Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover, and Shannon Walker, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Soichi Noguchi, undocked from the ISS at 8:35 p.m. Eastern Time Saturday (0035 GMT Sunday) to start the journey home.
Crew-1 is the first of six crewed missions NASA and SpaceX will fly as part of the agency s Commercial Crew Program. Enditem
Image: NASA/Bill Ingalls
2021-05-02 14:44:01 UTC
While most of the U.S. was sleeping on Saturday night into Sunday morning, four astronauts aboard the International Space Station made the journey back home.
NASA astronauts Victor Glover, Michael Hopkins, and Shannon Glover, along with Soichi Noguchi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), boarded their SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule, dubbed Resilience, at 8:35 p.m. ET on Saturday. Six and a half hours later, all four were safely back on Earth, splashing down off the coast of Florida at 2:56 a.m. ET.
The timing of their arrival is notable here. This was the first nighttime splashdown for a crewed U.S. spacecraft since the Apollo 8 returned to Earth in 1968.