Space Station Crew Members Head Back to Earth

TL;DR

The Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft, carrying cosmonaut Ali Kononenko and two other crew members, undocks from the International Space Station to begin its journey back to Earth.

Transcript

moscow time 3 49 44 central time expedition 45 heading home for a landing on the step of kazakhstan you have a good stay don't miss us too much we'll see you in march thank you thank you for working together we'll be waiting for you as well sergey volkov on board the international space station wishing his fellow cosmonaut ali kononenko a good jour... Read More

Key Insights

• 🤶 The Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft undocked from the International Space Station and began its journey back to Earth.
• 🔥 The spacecraft performed an eight-second separation burn to increase its distance from the ISS.
• 🪛 The crew, including Ali Kononenko, Scott Kelly, and Mikhail Kornienko, will return to Earth in March.
• 🛰️ The crew spent a total of 141 days in space, completing 2,256 orbits and covering a distance of 59.6 million miles.
• 🛰️ The spacecraft will travel two orbits away from the ISS before performing a de-orbit burn to reenter Earth's atmosphere.
• 🤶 The Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft carried the Orbital ATK resupply ship Cygnus to the ISS.
• 🧭 The ISS passed over Eastern Russia near the Chinese border during the undocking.

Questions & Answers

Q: Who is aboard the Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft?

The Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft is carrying cosmonaut Ali Kononenko and two other crew members back to Earth.

Q: How did the spacecraft increase its distance from the ISS?

The spacecraft performed an eight-second separation burn using four thrusters to increase its distance from the International Space Station.

Q: When will crew member Scott Kelly return to Earth?

Scott Kelly, along with Sergey Volkov and Mikhail Kornienko, will return to Earth in March.

Q: How long did the crew spend in space?

The crew, including Ali Kononenko, spent 141 days in space, completing 2,256 orbits covering a distance of 59.6 million miles.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Soyuz TMA-17M spacecraft undocks from the International Space Station, beginning its return journey to Earth.

• The spacecraft performed an eight-second separation burn to increase its distance from the ISS.

• Crew member Scott Kelly and others will return to Earth in March.