Today, August 9, SpaceX's Crew-10 astronauts are poised to return to Earth after an impressive nearly five-month stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Enthusiasts can witness this significant event live, as the mission's Crew Dragon capsule, affectionately named Endurance, is projected to splash down in the Pacific Ocean near the California coast at 11:33 a.m. EDT (1533 GMT; 8:33 a.m. local California time). Live coverage will commence at 10:15 a.m. EDT (1415 GMT) and can be accessed through Space.com or directly via NASA's streaming service.
Crew-10 is the tenth operational astronaut mission launched by SpaceX to ferry astronauts to and from the ISS as part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program (CCP). The mission includes a remarkable team of astronauts: Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers from NASA, Takuya Onishi from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Kirill Peskov from Roscosmos, the Russian space agency. McClain serves as the commander of Crew-10, while Ayers takes on the role of pilot, and Onishi and Peskov operate as mission specialists.
On March 14, Crew-10 launched atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and successfully docked with the ISS two days later. During their time in orbit, the Crew-10 astronauts engaged in extensive scientific research. Their studies focused on the mental and physical effects of space travel, blood flow dynamics from the brain to the heart, and the development of future lunar navigation techniques, among other critical topics, as noted by NASA officials in a blog post on August 4.
The transition for Crew-10's departure began last Saturday, August 2, when SpaceX's four-person Crew-11 mission arrived at the ISS. The Crew-10 astronauts dedicated the following days to advising their replacements, while also preparing for their return journey to Earth and reflecting on their remarkable experiences in space. Ayers expressed her gratitude during a farewell ceremony on August 5, stating, "We got to accomplish a lot of really amazing operational things... I think that we're leaving with a heart full of gratitude."
The hatches between Endurance and the ISS were securely closed on August 8 at 4:20 p.m. EDT (2020 GMT), and the capsule undocked approximately two hours later at 6:15 p.m. EDT (2205 GMT). Since then, Endurance has been navigating its way back to Earth, preparing for its historic splashdown today. This will mark the first Pacific Ocean return for a SpaceX CCP mission; all previous missions have concluded off the Florida coast. The shift to West Coast reentries aims to reduce the risk of falling space debris causing damage or injury.
Although Crew-10 is the first SpaceX astronaut mission to land in the Pacific, it is not the first overall; earlier this year, the private Fram2 and Axiom 4 missions achieved similar splashdowns. For Ayers and Peskov, this marks their inaugural journey into space, while McClain and Onishi have now completed their second missions. Onishi notably served as the commander of the ISS' current Expedition 73 from April until recently handing over command to cosmonaut Sergey Ryzhikov.
As Crew-10 concludes its mission, the excitement surrounding space exploration continues to grow, paving the way for future endeavors in the realm of human spaceflight.
