Emirati astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi returns home on Sept.1

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

US space agency Nasa has confirmed that SpaceX Crew-6 members will return to earth no earlier than Sept. 1.

Nasa said on Twitter, “Our Crew 6 astronauts have been living and working on the @Space_Station for nearly six months—now, they're about to come home!

“Hear from the crew: @NASA_Astronauts Stephen Bowen and Woody Hoburg, UAE astronaut Sultan Alneyadi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev will participate in a news conference from the @Space_Station  on Aug. 23 at 2:40pm ET.

The crew will undock from the space station no earlier than Sept. 1.”

Emirati astronaut Neyadi made history as the first Arab astronaut to complete a spacewalk and spend 6 months on the International Space Station.

Nasa’s SpaceX Crew-6 will answer media questions at 2:40 p.m. EDT Wednesday, Aug. 23, about their mission aboard International Space Station prior to returning to Earth.

The event will air on Nasa Television, the NASA app, and the agency’s website.

The crew has been living and working aboard the station since docking on March 3, 2023. During the mission, the crew contributed to hundreds of experiments and technology demonstrations, including student robotic challenges, plant genetics, and human health in microgravity to prepare for exploration beyond low Earth orbit and to benefit life on Earth.

The crew’s SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, named Endeavour, will undock from the space station no earlier than Friday, Sept. 1, splashing down off the coast of Florida.

Crew-6 is the sixth crew rotation mission with SpaceX for the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Regular commercial crew rotation missions enable NASA to continue the important research and technology investigations taking place aboard the station.

Such research benefits people on Earth and lays the groundwork for future human exploration through the agency’s Artemis missions, which will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future expeditions to Mars.