Theirs was the final splashdown of a SpaceX crew dragon off the coast of Florida.
SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule Freedom splashed down into the Gulf of America just before 6 p.m. on March 18, finally returning home two astronauts whose eight-day trip to orbit was extended to more than nine months.
The crew departed from the International Space Station just after 1 a.m. on March 18, and their capsule turned itself around and fired its re-entry burns around 5:11 p.m., slowing itself to a point where it was pulled out of orbit and began re-entering the atmosphere, aiming for a splashdown zone off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida.
By 5:37 p.m., all cargo was stowed, harnesses were strapped tight, and their spacesuit helmets were closed, and at 5:44 p.m. they faded into a communication blackout.
Commander Nick Hague’s voice broke routine radio silence, letting SpaceX mission control know he and his crew were “Enjoying the ride,” as video from a high-altitude aircraft showed the first images of Freedom coming back to the earth as a plasma trail streaked behind.
At 5:54 p.m., Cheers erupted as drogue parachutes deployed, followed shortly by the main parashutes, slowing the spacecraft from more than 370 mph down to 16 mph.
Another round of cheer erupted at 5:58 p.m. as the capsule landed in the calm gulf waters.
“What a ride,” Hague said. “There is a capsule full of grins ear to ear.”
Dragon Freedom conducted the push through the atmosphere autonomously, and NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams rode that man-made comet seated on both sides of their fellow astronaut Hague, Crew-9’s Commander, and Roscosmos Cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov, Crew-9’s pilot.
Hague and Gorbunov themselves returned after serving a multi-month mission as part of the International Space Station’s 72nd liveaboard science expedition.
Theirs was the final splashdown of a SpaceX crew dragon off the coast of Florida, as NASA officals announced that all future splashdowns occurring off the coast of southern California beginning with the return of Crew-10 this summer.
This story will be updated with additional details.
By T.J. Muscaro
