Two NASA astronauts have splashed down off the coast of Florida after spending more than nine months stuck in space.
Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams began their 17-hour journey back to Earth from the International Space Station (ISS) earlier.
The astronauts were only meant to be on the ISS for eight days when they blasted off from Earth on 5 June last year.
They were testing out Boeing’s long-awaited Starliner, a ship designed to rival SpaceX’s Crew Dragon that is currently used to ferry astronauts into space.
However, by the time they docked at the ISS, the Starliner had suffered major problems – with five helium leaks, five dead manoeuvring thrusters and a propellant valve that failed to close completely.
It returned to Earth without them, after it was decided Mr Wilmore, 62, and Ms Williams, 59, would be safer waiting in orbit.
Since then, the two US Navy veterans have completed spacewalks, experiments and even helped sort out the plumbing onboard the ISS.
The astronauts repeatedly said they enjoyed the mission, with Ms Williams describing the space station as her “happy place”.
The SpaceX vehicle that has brought them home arrived at the space station in September carrying NASA’s Nick Hague and cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, along with two empty seats.
Read more:
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Crew welcomed to ISS to replace stranded astronauts
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