BSS
  07 Apr 2024, 10:42

Russia's Soyuz MS-24 spacecraft brings 3 cosmonauts back to Earth

MOSCOW, April 7, 2024 (BSS/XINHUA) - The Russian Soyuz MS-24 spacecraft, carrying an international crew of three cosmonauts, has successfully returned to Earth on Saturday.

The spacecraft landed at 10:17 Moscow time (0717 GMT) on Saturday near the Kazakh city of Jezkazgan, bringing home Russian cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy, Belarusian spaceflight participant Marina Vasilevskaya, and NASA astronaut Loral O'Hara.

The spacecraft had previously undocked from the Rassvet research module of the Russian segment of the International Space Station. The deorbiting and descent to Earth were completed in normal mode.

Oleg Novitskiy and Marina Vasilevskaya spent 14 days in orbit, while Loral O'Hara completed a 204-day mission. This marks Novitskiy's fourth spaceflight, bringing his total time in space to 545 days. For Vasilevskaya and O'Hara, this mission concludes their first spaceflights.