Crew splashes down after 8-month mission on International Space Station

Astronauts Jessica Meir, Jack Hathaway, Sophie Adenot, and Andrei Fedyaev concluded their eight-month mission aboard the International Space Station on Thursday, safely re-entering Earth's atmosphere off the coast of California. The SpaceX Dragon Freedom spacecraft, carrying the crew of four, touched down in the Pacific Ocean after a 27-hour return journey.

Mission commander Meir expressed her excitement about returning to Earth, stating, "We are so excited to be back on planet Earth after an incredible mission on the International Space Station."

Upon landing, the Dragon capsule was carefully hoisted onto a specialized ship, and the astronauts were individually assisted out of the spacecraft. They underwent initial medical examinations before being transported by helicopter to a landing site and subsequently flown to Houston, Texas, home to the NASA center responsible for astronaut operations.

During their time aboard the ISS, Adenot made history as the first French female astronaut to conduct a spacewalk, performing three of them on August 18, August 25, and September 1. The four astronauts joined four new crew members who arrived at the orbiting laboratory last week for a six-month stay. Despite the international cooperation agreements being strained following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the United States and other ISS partners have maintained their collaboration with Russia on the space station, which is expected to be deorbited and crash into the ocean around 2030.