Expedition 36 Crew Returns Safely To Earth

By  //  September 11, 2013

SEE THE LIVE STREAM REPLAY

LIVE STREAM: Click above to watch the Expedition 36 crew come back to Earth. The estimated time of departure is 7:35 p.m. EDT tonight, and Live NASA TV coverage (click above) of the departure will start at 7:15 p.m. They live coverage of the crew’s reentry will start at 10:05 p.m. EDT, and at and 10:58 p.m. the astronauts will touchdown.

NASA.gov – Expedition 36 crew members Pavel Vinogradov, Chris Cassidy and Alexander Misurkin have said farewell to their crewmates.

(From left) Expedition 36 crew members Chris Cassidy, Pavel Vinogradov and Alexander Misurkin prepare to enter their Soyuz TMA-08M spacecraft for their return home. (NASA.gov image)
(From left) Expedition 36 crew members Chris Cassidy, Pavel Vinogradov and Alexander Misurkin prepare to enter their Soyuz TMA-08M spacecraft for their return home. (NASA.gov image)

They closed the hatches between the International Space Station and the Soyuz TMA-08M spacecraft at 4:19 p.m. EDT. They are conducting leak checks and putting on their Sokol pressure suits.

The day before, Vinogradov handed over control of the station to Flight Engineer Fyodor Yurchikhin in a traditional Change of Command Ceremony in the Zvezda service module. Yurchikhin will take over command and officially lead Expedition 37 when Expedition 36 undocks at 7:35 p.m. They are scheduled for a Kazakhstan landing at 10:58 p.m. (8:58 a.m. Wednesday Kazakhstan time).

Russian search and rescue helicopters are seen as they fly over Kazakhstan a day ahead of the scheduled landing of the Soyuz TMA-08M.
Russian search and rescue helicopters are seen as they fly over Kazakhstan a day ahead of the scheduled landing of the Soyuz TMA-08M.

Undocking coverage begins at 7:15 p.m. and landing coverage begins at 9:45 p.m on NASA TV.

Commander Vinogradov and Flight Engineers Cassidy and Misurkin first arrived at the International Space Station on March 28. They leave behind Yurchikhin and Flight Engineers Karen Nyberg and Luca Parmitano, who arrived at the station and docked to the Rassvet module on May 28, just four orbits after launch. They are due to go home in November in their Soyuz TMA-09M.

Waiting back on Earth to join Expedition 37 are future crew members Oleg Kotov, Mike Hopkins and Sergey Ryazanskiy. They are in Kazakhstan preparing for a Sept. 25 launch in their Soyuz TMA-10M spacecraft. The new space trio will arrive at the orbital laboratory just four orbits, or six hours, later and dock to Poisk.

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