Landing. Credits: NASA
The deorbit and landing went incredibly smoothly with Tim Peake, Tim Kopra and commander Yuri Malenchenko landing at 09:14 GMT in the steppe of Kazakhstan.
Credits: NASA
The large deorbit burn that reduced the Soyuz TMA-19M spacecraft’s speed by 128 m/s was started at 08:22 GMT over the South Atlantic Ocean. Yuri reported to mission control that everything went as planned as the spacecraft approached the African coast.
As the Soyuz entered Earth’s atmosphere at 100 km altitude its exterior heated up to 1600°C. The parachutes opened at 09:00 GMT with landing occurring at 09:14.
Parachutes open. Credits: NASA
Search and rescue teams were on hand immediately with Yuri Malenchenko out of the capsule first followed by Tim Peake and Tim Kopra.
Tim Peake phones home. Credits: NASA
Discussion: one comment
Welcome back to the smelly, noisy and bright terra firma. As the tourist brochure for Earth says: “You’ll never believe the sensory overload that the Blue Marble has to offer the exhausted space traveller. Make sure your visit here includes sampling the malty, sugary water they call ‘beer’!”