How an ESA astronaut returned to Earth after 159 days in space

Space · Published 11 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: This video captures the conclusion of Paolo Nespoli's MagISStra mission. Witness the moment the Soyuz TMA-20 spacecraft used its retrorockets to achieve a soft landing on the Kazakh steppes.

European Space Agency astronaut Paolo Nespoli has completed a 159-day mission aboard the International Space Station. Since December, Nespoli has acted as flight engineer for Expeditions 26 and 27; his MagISStra mission represents the third extended stay by a European astronaut aboard the station.

The return journey began when Nespoli, alongside Soyuz Commander Dmitri Kondratyev and NASA's Cady Coleman, undocked from the station's nadir Rassvet port. The mission concluded with a soft landing in the steppes of Kazakhstan at 04:27 CEST.

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