News: Space Station Trio Returns Safely To Earth Aboard Russian Craft

[CHANAKYA]

[img]http://msnbcmedia1.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/120427-space-pettit-530a.grid-5x2.jpg[/img]



[size=4][color=#333333][font=Georgia, Times, serif]A Russian space capsule touched down on the steppes of Kazakhstan in Central Asia Friday, safely returning a joint U.S.-Russian crew to Earth after months aboard the International Space Station.[/font][/color]
[color=#333333][font=Georgia, Times, serif]The Soyuz TMA-22 spacecraft landed at 7:45 a.m. ET, less than four hours after undocking from the [url="http://www.space.com/50-building-international-space-station.html"]space station[/url]. Riding home aboard the space capsule were NASA astronaut Dan Burbank and Russian cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov and Anatoly Ivanishin, who were reintroduced to the strong tug of Earth's gravity after spending 165 days, or nearly five and a half months, in orbit.[/font][/color]
[color=#333333][font=Georgia, Times, serif]Burbank, Shkaplerov and Ivanishin launched into space in mid-November. The three men formed half of the space station's six-person crew. Their homecoming brought the outpost's [url="http://www.space.com/14131-astronauts-dream-space-iss-crew.html"]Expedition 30 mission[/url] to a close and marked the beginning of Expedition 31.[/font][/color]
[color=#333333][font=Georgia, Times, serif]For Burbank, who commanded the Expedition 30 mission, returning to Earth was bittersweet. He said he loved his time in space but was ready to come home and be with his family again. [[url="http://www.space.com/14014-space-station-expedition-30-soyuz-baikonur-photos.html"]Gallery: Space Station's Expedition 30 Mission[/url]][/font][/color]
[color=#333333][font=Georgia, Times, serif]This has been an amazing experience," Burbank said Wednesday during a change-of-command ceremony, shortly before handing control of the orbiting lab over to Expedition 31 cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko.[/font][/color]
[color=#333333][font=Georgia, Times, serif]Burbank also took some time to thank the many people who built the [url="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/47196674/ns/technology_and_science-space/#"][font=inherit]International[/font][font=inherit] [/font][font=inherit]Space[/font][font=inherit] [/font][font=inherit]Station[/font][/url], as well as the mission controllers around the world who watch over him and the other denizens of the $100 billion orbiting outpost.[/font][/color]
[color=#333333][font=Georgia, Times, serif]"It has been an honor and a privilege to be a part of that magnificent team, to be a member of this crew and to be commander of ISS Expedition 30," Burbank said.[/font][/color]

[color=#333333][font=Georgia, Times, serif]source: msnbc[/font][/color][/size]

[PMREDDY19]

[center] [/center]

[center]what an wonderfull Experience it must be,,[/center]

[center]Staying so far above the ground for so many days with completelly mechanised environment... [/center]

[mammamiya]

gp

[mtkr]

[CHANAKYA]

[quote name='PMR aka OM' timestamp='1335540382' post='1301697832']
[center] [/center]

[center]what an wonderfull Experience it must be,,[/center]

[center]Staying so far above the ground for so many days with completelly mechanised environment...[/center]
[/quote]

Yup....