NASA astronauts safely splash down after first commercial crew flight to
space station

Date:
August 2, 2020
Source:
NASA
Summary:
Two NASA astronauts splashed down safely in the Gulf of Mexico
Sunday for the first time in a commercially built and operated
American crew spacecraft, returning from the International Space
Station to complete a test flight that marks a new era in human
spaceflight.



FULL STORY ==========================================================================
[A SpaceX fast boat races | Credit: NASA TV] A SpaceX fast boat races
toward the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft moments before it splashed
down in the Gulf of Mexico with NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug
Hurley aboard.

Credit: NASA TV [A SpaceX fast boat races | Credit: NASA TV] A SpaceX
fast boat races toward the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft moments before
it splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico with NASA astronauts Bob Behnken
and Doug Hurley aboard.

Credit: NASA TV Close Two NASA astronauts splashed down safely in the Gulf
of Mexico Sunday for the first time in a commercially built and operated American crew spacecraft, returning from the International Space Station
to complete a test flight that marks a new era in human spaceflight.


========================================================================== SpaceX's Crew Dragon, carrying Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley,
splashed down under parachutes in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Florida at 2:48 p.m. EDT Sunday and was successfully recovered
by SpaceX. After returning to shore, the astronauts immediately will
fly back to Houston.

"Welcome home, Bob and Doug! Congratulations to the NASA and SpaceX teams
for the incredible work to make this test flight possible," said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. "It's a testament to what we can accomplish
when we work together to do something once thought impossible. Partners
are key to how we go farther than ever before and take the next steps on
daring missions to the Moon and Mars." Behnken and Hurley's return was
the first splashdown for American astronauts since Thomas Stafford, Vance Brand, and Donald "Deke" Slayton landed in the Pacific Ocean off the coast
of Hawaii on July 24, 1975, at the end of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project.

NASA's SpaceX Demo-2 test flight launched May 30 from the Kennedy Space
Center in Florida. After reaching orbit, Behnken and Hurley named their
Crew Dragon spacecraft "Endeavour" as a tribute to the first space
shuttle each astronaut had flown aboard.

Nearly 19 hours later, Crew Dragon docked to the forward port of the International Space Station's Harmony module May 31.



==========================================================================
"On behalf of all SpaceX employees, thank you to NASA for the opportunity
to return human spaceflight to the United States by flying NASA astronauts
Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley," said SpaceX President and Chief Operating
Officer Gwynne Shotwell. "Congratulations to the entire SpaceX and NASA
team on such an extraordinary mission. We could not be more proud to see
Bob and Doug safely back home -- we all appreciate their dedication to
this mission and helping us start the journey towards carrying people
regularly to low Earth orbit and on to the Moon and Mars. And I really
hope they enjoyed the ride!" Behnken and Hurley participated in a number
of scientific experiments, spacewalks and public engagement events during
their 62 days aboard station.

Overall, the astronaut duo spent 64 days in orbit, completed 1,024 orbits around Earth and traveled 27,147,284 statute miles.

The astronauts contributed more than 100 hours of time to supporting
the orbiting laboratory's investigations. Hurley conducted the Droplet Formation Study inside of the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG),
which evaluates water droplet formation and water flow. Hurley also
conducted the Capillary Structures investigation, which studies the use
of different structures and containers to manage fluids and gases.

Hurley and Behnken worked on numerous sample switch outs for the
Electrolysis Measurement (EM) experiment, which looks at bubbles created
using electrolysis and has implications for numerous electrochemical
reactions and devices. Both crew members also contributed images to
the Crew Earth Observations (CEO) study. CEO images help record how
our planet is changing over time, from human- caused changes -- such as
urban growth and reservoir construction -- to natural dynamic events,
including hurricanes, floods, and volcanic eruptions.

Behnken conducted four spacewalks while on board the space station with Expedition 63 Commander and NASA colleague Chris Cassidy. The duo upgraded
two power channels on the far starboard side of the station's truss with
new lithium-ion batteries. They also routed power and Ethernet cables,
removed H- fixtures that were used for ground processing of the solar
arrays prior to their launch, installed a protective storage unit for
robotic operations, and removed shields and coverings in preparation
for the arrival later this year of the Nanoracks commercial airlock on
a SpaceX cargo delivery mission.

Behnken now is tied for most spacewalks by an American astronaut with
Michael Lopez-Alegria, Peggy Whitson, and Chris Cassidy, each of whom has completed 10 spacewalks. Behnken now has spent a total of 61 hours and 10 minutes spacewalking, which makes him the U.S. astronaut with the third
most total time spacewalking, behind Lopez-Alegria and Andrew Feustel,
and the fourth most overall.

The Demo-2 test flight is part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program, which
has worked with the U.S. aerospace industry to launch astronauts on
American rockets and spacecraft from American soil to the space station
for the first time since 2011. This is SpaceX's final test flight and
is providing data on the performance of the Falcon 9 rocket, Crew Dragon spacecraft and ground systems, as well as in-orbit, docking, splashdown,
and recovery operations.

Crew Dragon Endeavour will return back to SpaceX's Dragon Lair in Florida
for inspection and processing. Teams will examine the spacecraft's
data and performance from throughout the test flight. The completion
of Demo-2 and the review of the mission and spacecraft pave the way
for NASA to certify SpaceX's crew transportation system for regular
flights carrying astronauts to and from the space station. SpaceX is
readying the hardware for the first rotational mission, called Crew-1,
later this year. This mission would occur after NASA certification,
which is expected to take about six weeks.

The goal of NASA's Commercial Crew Program is safe, reliable and
cost-effective transportation to and from the International Space
Station. This could allow for additional research time and increase the opportunity for discovery aboard humanity's testbed for exploration,
including helping us prepare for human exploration of the Moon and Mars.


========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by NASA. Note: Content may be edited
for style and length.


==========================================================================


Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/08/200802164730.htm

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