Space Station

Four astronauts returned to Earth from the International Space Station early Friday with a parachute-assisted splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida, the sixth crew launch or landing in support of the station program in fewer than 50 days.

Three NASA astronauts and a European Space Agency mission specialist left the International Space Station early Thursday aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule, heading for splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida to wrap up a 176-day expedition in orbit.

Four astronauts closed out a nearly six-month expedition on the International Space Station with an undocking early Thursday on SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance spacecraft, heading for splashdown about 24 hours later off the coast of Florida. Departure from the station occurred at 1:20 a.m. EDT (0520 GMT) Thursday, and the crew splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico at 12:43 a.m. EDT (0443 GMT) Friday.

Three Americans and one Italian astronaut floated into the International Space Station late Wednesday after a nearly 16-hour commute aboard a SpaceX crew capsule from a launch pad in Florida, ready for a multi-month expedition performing experiments, maintenance, and upgrades.

A SpaceX crew capsule splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Georgia Monday with a retired NASA astronaut and three wealthy businessmen, closing out an extended 17-day mission on the first fully commercial, non-government visit to the International Space Station.