First Private Astronaut Crew Returns to Earth from Space Station
2022-04-27
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1The first private astronaut crew to visit the International Space Station (ISS) has returned safely to Earth.
2The team flew to the ISS and back on the spaceship Crew Dragon.
3The SpaceX company vehicle landed as planned in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida on Monday.
4SpaceX also provided the Falcon 9 rocket that carried the team to orbit.
5The return to Earth marked the end of a two-week science mission aboard the ISS.
6The flight was the first to be organized and operated by a private company involving a completely commercial astronaut crew.
7"Welcome back to planet Earth," SpaceX Mission Control said in a radio message to the crew.
8"We hope you enjoyed the extra few days in space."
9The ISS mission was supposed to last just over a week.
10But weather conditions kept the crew in space for more than two weeks.
11Before departing the space station on Sunday night, the group thanked their seven ISS hosts, including three NASA astronauts whose own mission will end soon.
12The crew was led by Michael Lopez-Alegria, a retired astronaut for the American space agency NASA.
13He now works as the vice president of Axiom Space, which organized and operated the ISS mission.
14The 63-year-old Lopez-Alegria was described as the mission commander.
15He was joined by the mission pilot, Larry Conner, a 72-year-old businessman and private pilot from Ohio.
16The other members were 64-year-old Israeli man Eytan Stibbe, a fighter pilot and 52-year-old Mark Pathy, a Canadian businessman.
17Stibbe and Pathy served as mission specialists.
18After being helped out of the capsule, the crew members were picked up by a recovery ship and given a quick health examine.
19The team was then flown to NASA in Florida for more detailed medical check-ups.
20"Everybody looks great and is doing reasonably well," Axiom operations director Derek Hassmann told reporters.
21He described the astronauts as being "in great spirits."
22Connor called the experience an "amazing mission."
23Lopez-Alegria said his "adventure" aboard the ISS was "even longer and more exciting" than he imagined it would be.
24Pathy said the mission was "eye-opening in so many ways," and would surely have "a lasting impact on my life."
25The mission was praised by Axiom, NASA and industry officials as a turning point in the latest expansion of commercial space activities.
26"We proved that we can prepare the crew in a way that makes them effective and productive on orbit," Hassmann said.
27"What it demonstrates to the world is that there is a new avenue to get to low-Earth orbit."
28In the past, the ISS has accepted some visits by private citizens.
29But the latest mission marked the first all-commercial team of astronauts sent to use the station as an orbiting laboratory.
30The crew brought 25 science and biomedical experiments with them to carry out in orbit.
31It was the sixth human spaceflight for SpaceX in nearly two years.
32The company has a contract to fly three more Axiom astronaut missions to the ISS over the next two years.
33Axiom's second flight is planned for next spring.
34I'm Bryan Lynn.
1The first private astronaut crew to visit the International Space Station (ISS) has returned safely to Earth. 2The team flew to the ISS and back on the spaceship Crew Dragon. The SpaceX company vehicle landed as planned in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida on Monday. SpaceX also provided the Falcon 9 rocket that carried the team to orbit. 3The return to Earth marked the end of a two-week science mission aboard the ISS. The flight was the first to be organized and operated by a private company involving a completely commercial astronaut crew. 4"Welcome back to planet Earth," SpaceX Mission Control said in a radio message to the crew. "We hope you enjoyed the extra few days in space." 5The ISS mission was supposed to last just over a week. But weather conditions kept the crew in space for more than two weeks. 6Before departing the space station on Sunday night, the group thanked their seven ISS hosts, including three NASA astronauts whose own mission will end soon. 7The crew was led by Michael Lopez-Alegria, a retired astronaut for the American space agency NASA. He now works as the vice president of Axiom Space, which organized and operated the ISS mission. 8The 63-year-old Lopez-Alegria was described as the mission commander. He was joined by the mission pilot, Larry Conner, a 72-year-old businessman and private pilot from Ohio. The other members were 64-year-old Israeli man Eytan Stibbe, a fighter pilot and 52-year-old Mark Pathy, a Canadian businessman. Stibbe and Pathy served as mission specialists. 9After being helped out of the capsule, the crew members were picked up by a recovery ship and given a quick health examine. The team was then flown to NASA in Florida for more detailed medical check-ups. 10"Everybody looks great and is doing reasonably well," Axiom operations director Derek Hassmann told reporters. He described the astronauts as being "in great spirits." 11Connor called the experience an "amazing mission." Lopez-Alegria said his "adventure" aboard the ISS was "even longer and more exciting" than he imagined it would be. 12Pathy said the mission was "eye-opening in so many ways," and would surely have "a lasting impact on my life." 13The mission was praised by Axiom, NASA and industry officials as a turning point in the latest expansion of commercial space activities. 14"We proved that we can prepare the crew in a way that makes them effective and productive on orbit," Hassmann said. "What it demonstrates to the world is that there is a new avenue to get to low-Earth orbit." 15In the past, the ISS has accepted some visits by private citizens. But the latest mission marked the first all-commercial team of astronauts sent to use the station as an orbiting laboratory. The crew brought 25 science and biomedical experiments with them to carry out in orbit. 16It was the sixth human spaceflight for SpaceX in nearly two years. The company has a contract to fly three more Axiom astronaut missions to the ISS over the next two years. Axiom's second flight is planned for next spring. 17I'm Bryan Lynn. 18The Associated Press and Reuters reported on this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the reports for VOA Learning English. 19_____________________________________________________________________ 20Words in This Story 21mission - n. an important project or trip, especially involving space travel 22commercial - adj. related to buying and selling things 23host - n. a person who organizes a party or special event 24for guests 25amazing - adj. very surprising 26adventure - n. an exciting and sometimes dangerous experience 27impact - n. the effect that a person, event or situation has on someone or something 28avenue - n. a possible way of doing or achieving something 29We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.