CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Two NASA astronauts have returned to Earth in a dramatic, retro-style splashdown carried out by Elon Musk's SpaceX company. The capsule carrying Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken parachuted into the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, Sunday afternoon. It is the first splashdown in 45 years for NASA astronauts and also the first time a private company has brought people back from orbit. Their return clears the way for another SpaceX crew flight as early as next month. The astronauts' homecoming comes a day after they departed the International Space Station and two months after they blasted off on the historic mission.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
The SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft is lifted onto the SpaceX GO Navigator recovery ship shortly after it landed with NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley onboard in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Fla., Sunday, Aug. 2, 2020. The Demo-2 test flight for NASA's Commercial Crew Program was the first to deliver astronauts to the International Space Station and return them safely to Earth onboard a commercially built and operated spacecraft. Behnken and Hurley returned after spending 64 days in space. (Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP)
Posted at 8:07 AM, Aug 02, 2020
and last updated 2020-08-03 15:32:06-04
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