The Soyuz MS-19 spacecraft carrying a three-person crew of Russian cosmonauts landed safely in Kazakhstan early Sunday, marking the end of a six-month mission to the International Space Station.
The capsule carrying cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov, Pyotr Dubrov, and Mark Vande Hei of NASA touched down on the steppe of Kazakhstan at 4:55 a.m. EST (0955 GMT) after a three-hour and 12-minute descent from the orbiting outpost.
Russian flight controllers at the Mission Control Center outside Moscow confirmed the safe landing and reported that the crew was feeling well after their journey back to Earth.
The Soyuz MS-19 mission launched on Oct. 5, 2021, and during their 195 days in space, the crew conducted dozens of scientific experiments and maintenance tasks on the space station. They also welcomed several visiting spacecraft, including the SpaceX Crew-3 Dragon capsule and the Boeing Starliner Orbital Flight Test-2.
Vande Hei returned to Earth after spending 355 days in space, breaking the American record for the longest single spaceflight. He had been on the space station since April 9, 2021, as part of the Expedition 64 and 65 missions.
Shkaplerov and Dubrov spent 188 days in space on the Soyuz MS-19 mission, which was their second spaceflight together. They previously flew to the space station on the Soyuz MS-11 mission in 2018-2019.
The safe return of the Soyuz MS-19 crew marks the successful completion of the mission and paves the way for future space exploration missions. The International Space Station continues to serve as a hub for scientific research and international cooperation in space.
Additional Information:
– The Soyuz MS-19 spacecraft is a Russian spacecraft used to transport astronauts and cosmonauts to and from the International Space Station.
– The International Space Station is a modular space station in low Earth orbit. It is a joint project of five participating space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe), and CSA (Canada).
– NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei broke the American record for the longest single spaceflight, spending 355 days in space on the Soyuz MS-19 mission.
– The Soyuz MS-19 mission was the 13th long-duration expedition to the International Space Station. The mission began on October 5, 2021, and ended on March 27, 2022.
– The safe return of the Soyuz MS-19 crew marks the successful completion of the mission and paves the way for future space exploration missions..
