Soyuz Touchdown! Record-Breaking NASA Astronaut And Russian Crewmates Returned Back On Earth

Space.com

NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin landed on the steppes of Kazakhstan aboard a Soyuz spacecraft. Rubio broke the US single spaceflight record with 371 days in space.  Credit: NASA

Transcript

00:00 And there's our first view of the Soyuz MS-23 under the chutes, six minutes until touchdown.

00:12 This video is courtesy of Roscosmos.

00:24 Soyuz descending at its normal rate of descent.

00:28 Russian recovery forces are reporting back that everything is looking good from their

00:31 perspective.

00:43 There were some rain showers in the area earlier today.

00:46 The Soyuz descending under a deck, several decks of broken clouds.

00:51 But its touchdown point about 90 miles to the southeast of Jezka is gone.

00:58 Again this video courtesy of Roscosmos from the landing site.

01:03 Inaudible.

01:29 Less than five minutes to go until touchdown.

01:36 The extended mission of Frank Rubio, Sergei Prokopyev and Dmitry Patelin is now in the

01:42 home stretch.

01:43 End.

01:53 Once again, you're looking at the return of Frank Rubio, Sergei Prokopyev and Dmitry

02:22 Patelin after more than a year in space.

02:26 Less than four minutes from touchdown on the desolate steppe of Kazakhstan.

02:47 The parachutes deployed as planned at 6.03 a.m. central time.

02:54 Three minutes later, the Soyuz heat shield was jettisoned.

03:00 The next event will be just a second or two before touchdown.

03:04 That will be the firing of the soft landing engine.

03:07 Six engines fire to slow the Soyuz descent rate to just 1.5 meters per second.

03:13 How do you read us?

03:20 Inaudible.

03:24 We observe you.

03:27 We have a visual.

03:31 How do you read us here?

03:37 Inaudible.

03:44 Search and recovery forces communicating directly now with Sergei Prokopyev saying that they

03:49 have a good visual on the spacecraft.

03:53 Just over two minutes until touchdown.

03:57 It has been 1,000 meters.

03:59 We are not able to connect with them in audio yet.

04:03 We can hear them.

04:08 They are not here.

04:11 It has been 1,000 meters.

04:15 We hear them.

04:16 They are not here.

04:17 Less than 1,000 meters from touchdown.

04:26 So we are looking for the 20th and 52nd minute.

04:32 Plus nine atmospheric bias.

04:36 Plus 18 index point one.

04:42 The crew is feeling well.

04:48 Sergei Prokopyev continuing to provide reports back to the search and recovery forces indicating

04:55 that the crew is doing well just over a minute until touchdown.

05:00 The crew is doing well.

05:03 Let them know.

05:05 Cosmos 95409, for your information, the object has passed 500 meters and feeling well.

05:18 690 is out.

05:20 Search and recovery helicopters are circling the landing zone.

05:25 We might see one of those helicopters come into view shortly as the Soyuz is less than

05:31 500 meters off the ground.

05:33 We have come with the crew and feeling well.

05:38 Prepare 100 meters to ground.

05:42 100 meters to go.

05:43 The crew being told to brace for touchdown.

05:47 Object getting close to touchdown.

05:52 Object -- Touchdown.

05:54 Touchdown confirmed at 617 a.m. central time.

05:58 Rubio's record ride comes to an end as he, Prokopyev and Patelin return to Earth after

06:04 a 371-day, 157-million-mile journey at the International Space Station.

06:14 The third longest flight ever in human spaceflight history is over with a pinpoint landing on

06:19 the steppe of Kazakhstan.

06:28 (Russian)

06:39 Okay, all good.

06:42 (Russian)

07:06 Once again, Soyuz MS-23 has landed on the steppe of Kazakhstan.

07:11 A bullseye touchdown for the three crew members, Frank Rubio, Sergei Prokopyev, and Dmitry

07:17 Patelin.

07:21 409, how do you read?

07:28 249.

07:30 Occurring as planned at 617 a.m. central time, 717 a.m. eastern time, 517 p.m. at the landing

07:39 site that you're seeing right now in our live view.

07:44 About an hour and 53 minutes before sunset.

07:47 (Russian)

08:16 952 is on the ground.

08:24 The Russian Mi-8 helicopters are now descending in sequential fashion to arrive in the vicinity

08:33 of the spacecraft.

08:35 You can see one of those helicopters in view.

08:39 The all-terrain vehicles will be moving toward the spacecraft as well, repositioning themselves

08:45 to enable us to get video of the recovery process, the extraction of the crew.

08:52 And the crew will be placed in reclining chairs next to the Soyuz MS-23 for a few minutes

09:00 to regain their equilibrium before they're carried in those chairs to a nearby inflatable

09:07 medical tent where they will doff their Sokol launch and entry suits, get into more comfortable

09:13 flight clothing, and then make their way with the assistance of recovery personnel to three

09:23 helicopters, one for each crew member, for a two-hour flight back to the staging city

09:28 of Karaganda.

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