A birthday descent: Don Pettit returns from the International Space Station
NASA astronaut Don Pettit and Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner depart the International Space Station aboard the Soyuz MS-26. This mission concludes with a parachute-assisted landing on the steppes of Kazakhstan, marking a unique milestone for Pettit.
The Soyuz MS-26 mission involves a precise return to Earth, undocking from the International Space Station at 5:57 p.m. EDT. The spacecraft is scheduled to touch down southeast of Dzhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, at 9:20 p.m. EDT.
The timing of this return is particularly notable, as the landing coincides with Don Pettit’s 70th birthday. The crew's journey concludes on the morning of Sunday, April 20, following their departure from the orbital laboratory.
