The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft carrying NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina on their return to Earth after a nearly six-month science mission has completed its deorbit burn as expected ahead of splashdown at approximately 9:02 p.m. EST in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Tampa, Florida.
Four minutes before splashdown, the drogue parachutes will deploy at about 18,000 feet in altitude while Dragon is moving approximately 350 miles per hour, and less than a minute later, the main parachutes deploy at about 6,000 feet in altitude while the spacecraft is moving approximately 119 miles per hour.
NASA TV coverage available online and via the NASA app will continue until the crew is recovered from the spacecraft.
Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on Twitter, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.
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