NASA Crew-10 Astronauts Safely Return to Earth

Four astronauts from NASA’s Crew-10 mission have safely returned to Earth, concluding a 146-day scientific expedition aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

The crew splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the California coast at 3:33 p.m. UTC on Saturday after an 18-hour return journey in a SpaceX Dragon capsule.

The returning team included NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Russian cosmonaut Kirill Peskov.

Their mission, NASA’s 10th commercial crew rotation, advanced over 200 critical research projects, ranging from plant cultivation in microgravity to cellular behavior studies.

Launched on March 14, Crew-10 relieved the Crew-9 astronauts, including Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita “Suni” Williams, who had been unexpectedly stranded in orbit for nine months due to propulsion issues with Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. SpaceX ultimately facilitated their safe return.

Meanwhile, the ISS welcomed its next long-duration crew last week: NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, JAXA astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, who will conduct a six-month mission.