Crew-8 is set to return to Earth this Friday in a parachute-assisted splashdown after over seven months in space, with final departure conditions hinging on an upcoming weather report. The ISS team is gearing up for their undocking, and other members engage in ongoing space research.
NASA and SpaceX mission managers are now aiming for Wednesday, October 23, to begin the return journey of the Dragon Endeavour spacecraft carrying the four members of Crew-8. While weather conditions are improving off the coast of Florida, officials are waiting for a final weather report, expected early Wednesday, before confirming the undocking time and splashdown location for the crew.
The Crew-8 members—NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Mike Barratt, Jeanette Epps, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin—are concluding a seven-and-a-half-month space research mission that began with their launch aboard Dragon on March 3. Dominick will command the spacecraft, with Barratt as pilot and Epps and Grebenkin as mission specialists, as they return to Earth for a parachute-assisted splashdown expected on Friday. The exact time and location of the splashdown are still to be determined.
The homebound foursome woke up late again on Tuesday sleep shifting to accommodate the after-hours undocking activities. Expedition 72 Commander Suni Williams and Flight Engineers Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, and Nick Hague, all NASA astronauts, also woke up late as they prepare to assist the Crew-8 members and ready the International Space Station for Dragon’s undocking.
The three cosmonauts staying behind on the orbital lab, Flight Engineers Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, and Aleksandr Gorbunov, kept a normal schedule on Tuesday staying focused on space science and orbital maintenance. Ovchinin and Vagner took turns in the morning attaching sensors to themselves measuring their breathing rate. Afterward, Ovchinin observed the effects of natural and human impacts on Earth using a hyperspectrometer while Vagner packed trash inside the Progress 88 resupply ship. Gorbunov attached sensors to himself for a 24-hour session measuring his heart rate and blood pressure then serviced ventilation components in the Nauka science module.
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2 Comments
God bless the creator of the ship bringing them home. Government has failed again and depend on Elon Miusk. Pray for the safe return and splash down.🙏🤫✝️
Why didn’t stsrliner crew return???