It’s published •update
The first visitors to the International Space Station (ISS) from Poland, Hungary and India returned to Earth on Monday to close out their private mission and headed home on SpaceX.
Their capsules were not blocked from the orbital lab and the following morning they aimed for a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Southern California.
It marked a mission personally funded for the first time in over 40 years that India, Poland and Hungary saw one of their rockets in orbit.
The three astronauts were accompanied by Peggy Whitson, America’s most experienced space flyer.
They launched on June 25th from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
Schwansh Shukla of India, Slauz Uznanski Wysniewsky of Poland, and Tibor Kap of Hungary conducted dozens of experiments during their stay.
They also submitted calls from their country’s prime ministers, not just from school children.
“We spread the word to our country that these things are within our reach. These things are possible in small countries like us,” Kapu said at a farewell ceremony on Sunday, which ended with an emotional group embrace.
Shukla noted that when humanity came together for a common goal, “it’s really a miracle.”
“The sky is no longer at its limit. You can explore space,” added Uznansky Wysniewsky.
Their three countries shared the costs of the mission, paying more than $65 million (Euro 55 million) each.
This was the fourth axiom trip to the station since 2022. The Houston Company’s clients include countries looking for representatives of space and wealthy countries and countries.
NASA encompasses commercial space flights and helps set the stage for private space stations for works such as Axiom and the Lunar Landers.
Seven full-time residents of the space station remain in orbit representing the US, Russia and Japan.
Four of them will be replaced in a few weeks by a fresh crew launched by SpaceX for NASA.
“A safe journey home to the best planets in the solar system,” Space Station’s Anne McLain radioed when civilian crew left.
Additional sources •AP