Astronaut Christina Koch lands on Earth after record-setting space station mission
By
Robert Z. Pearlman
Published Feb 7, 2020 12:24 AM EDT
Christina Koch did not set out to break records on her first spaceflight, but with her
return to Earth after nearly a year in orbit, her mission is now one
for the history books.
Koch, a NASA astronaut, landed on the snow-covered steppe of Kazakhstan on Thursday (Feb. 6) with two of her International Space Station (ISS)
crewmates, Expedition 61 commander Luca Parmitano of the European Space
Agency (ESA) and cosmonaut Alexander Skvortsov of the Russian space
agency Roscosmos.
Descending under a parachute and further slowed by braking thrusters, the three touched down aboard Russia's Soyuz MS-13 spacecraft southeast of the Kazakh town of Dzhezkazgan at 4:12 a.m. EST (0912 GMT or 3:12 p.m. local time).
NASA astronaut Christina Koch, newly back on Earth after a record 328 days in space, gives a "thumbs up" upon exiting the Soyuz MS-13 spacecraft on the Kazakh steppe on Feb. 6, 2020. (Image credit: NASA TV)
Russian recovery forces, as well as NASA and ESA medical personnel, arrived quickly at the landing site to
assist Koch, Parmitano and Skvortsov out of the space capsule and to
conduct brief physical exams as the three crewmates began adjusting to
the pull of gravity again.
"Everyone says that getting back into
gravity is such a surprise, because you suddenly have to work to raise
your own arms and, of course, your legs," Koch said in a media interview
a few days before experiencing her first landing. "I haven't even had
to hold up my own body weight in a long time, so we will see how that
goes."
Koch, Parmitano and Skvortsov all appeared to be in good spirits, as they felt the chill of the open air for the first time since leaving Earth.
"I'm so overwhelmed and happy right now," Koch said a few minutes after landing.
Russia’s Soyuz MS-13 spacecraft seen after landing in Kazakhstan with Alexander Skvortsov, Luca Parmitano and Christina Koch from the International Space Station on Feb. 6, 2020. (Image credit: NASA TV)
The landing brought to an end Koch's 328 days in space, a new duration record for a single space mission by a woman. Parmitano and Skvortsov, who launched after Koch, returned to Earth after 201 days.
"There
are many people on the ground [who] are taking counts of what we have
done — how many EVAs [extravehicular activities or spacewalks], how many
hours of work, how many experiments, how many days we have spent up
here — none of those are important," said Parmitano, addressing his
station crewmates during a change of command ceremony on Wednesday.
"What is important is what you achieved. You, as the crew, made all of
this possible. It has been your incredible, incredible dedication that
has made it all possible."
Parmitano, Skvortsov and Koch undocked their Soyuz at 12:50 a.m. EST (0550 GMT). Their departure from the Poisk mini-research module (MRM-2) marked the official end of Expedition 61. Cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka and NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Andrew Morgan remained on the station to begin Expedition 62.
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News / Astronomy
Astronaut Christina Koch lands on Earth after record-setting space station mission
By Robert Z. Pearlman
Published Feb 7, 2020 12:24 AM EDT
Partner Content
Christina Koch did not set out to break records on her first spaceflight, but with her return to Earth after nearly a year in orbit, her mission is now one for the history books.
Koch, a NASA astronaut, landed on the snow-covered steppe of Kazakhstan on Thursday (Feb. 6) with two of her International Space Station (ISS) crewmates, Expedition 61 commander Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency (ESA) and cosmonaut Alexander Skvortsov of the Russian space agency Roscosmos.
Descending under a parachute and further slowed by braking thrusters, the three touched down aboard Russia's Soyuz MS-13 spacecraft southeast of the Kazakh town of Dzhezkazgan at 4:12 a.m. EST (0912 GMT or 3:12 p.m. local time).
NASA astronaut Christina Koch, newly back on Earth after a record 328 days in space, gives a "thumbs up" upon exiting the Soyuz MS-13 spacecraft on the Kazakh steppe on Feb. 6, 2020. (Image credit: NASA TV)
Russian recovery forces, as well as NASA and ESA medical personnel, arrived quickly at the landing site to assist Koch, Parmitano and Skvortsov out of the space capsule and to conduct brief physical exams as the three crewmates began adjusting to the pull of gravity again.
"Everyone says that getting back into gravity is such a surprise, because you suddenly have to work to raise your own arms and, of course, your legs," Koch said in a media interview a few days before experiencing her first landing. "I haven't even had to hold up my own body weight in a long time, so we will see how that goes."
Koch, Parmitano and Skvortsov all appeared to be in good spirits, as they felt the chill of the open air for the first time since leaving Earth.
"I'm so overwhelmed and happy right now," Koch said a few minutes after landing.
Russia’s Soyuz MS-13 spacecraft seen after landing in Kazakhstan with Alexander Skvortsov, Luca Parmitano and Christina Koch from the International Space Station on Feb. 6, 2020. (Image credit: NASA TV)
The landing brought to an end Koch's 328 days in space, a new duration record for a single space mission by a woman. Parmitano and Skvortsov, who launched after Koch, returned to Earth after 201 days.
"There are many people on the ground [who] are taking counts of what we have done — how many EVAs [extravehicular activities or spacewalks], how many hours of work, how many experiments, how many days we have spent up here — none of those are important," said Parmitano, addressing his station crewmates during a change of command ceremony on Wednesday. "What is important is what you achieved. You, as the crew, made all of this possible. It has been your incredible, incredible dedication that has made it all possible."
Parmitano, Skvortsov and Koch undocked their Soyuz at 12:50 a.m. EST (0550 GMT). Their departure from the Poisk mini-research module (MRM-2) marked the official end of Expedition 61. Cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka and NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Andrew Morgan remained on the station to begin Expedition 62.
Click here to continue reading on SPACE.com.
Report a Typo