NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 returned to Earth aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft at 3:29 a.m. EDT on October 25, 2024 reported Forbes. The spacecraft splashed down off Pensacola, Florida. Recovery teams from NASA and SpaceX quickly secured the spacecraft as it landed. The crew-8 astronauts returned to Earth after spending nearly eight months aboard the International Space Station.
The mission was launched on March 3, 2024, atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, Jeanette Epps, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin.
The splashdown and astronaut recovery were safe and caused no harm to the astronauts. However, during the routine medical assessment, the team found that an astronaut needed additional evaluation as he had a medical issue. All 4 astronauts were taken to a hospital in Pensacola, Florida.
Three of the four astronauts were discharged from the hospital. “The one astronaut who remains at Ascension is in stable condition under observation as a precautionary measure,” said NASA. The identity and medical condition of the astronaut remain hidden due to the patient’s privacy, said NASA.
The Crew-8 mission, which was originally planned to be only 2 months long, was extended to eight months due to a Boeing Starliner mission delay that carried astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore to the IS and experienced multiple thruster malfunctions after docking to the ISS.
The Boeing Starliner spacecraft returned uncrewed on as NASA plans to bring back the Sunita Williams and Butch Williamson by February 2025 in a SpaceX Dragon capsule with the recently launched Crew-9 mission, which carries NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos astronaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, saving two seats aboard the Dragon spacecraft.
