Dragon arrived at the station on May 17 after launching at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
NASA and its international partners are set to receive scientific research samples and hardware as a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft departs the International Space Station on Tuesday, June 16, for its return to Earth.
Spacecraft will return scientific samples, experimental hardware, and critical station equipment during a splashdown off California’s coast.
NASA and its international partners are set to receive scientific research samples and hardware as a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft departs the International Space Station on Tuesday, June 16, for its return to Earth.
The Dragon spacecraft will undock from the forward port of the station’s Harmony module at about 12:05 p.m., after receiving a command from SpaceX ground controllers.
The spacecraft will then fire its thrusters to move safely away from the orbiting complex.
Following a June 16 departure, the spacecraft will reenter Earth’s atmosphere on Wednesday, June 17, before splashing down off the coast of California at approximately 5:08 a.m. PDT.
NASA will not stream the splashdown but will post updates on its space station blog.
Dragon will return to Earth with thousands of pounds of cargo, carrying samples that could shape future space exploration and life on Earth.
Research returning includes bioprinted organs and cartilage tissue, data on improving cryogenic fuel storage for future space missions, and DNA‑inspired materials for developing new cancer treatments.
The returning hardware includes an ocular imaging device for monitoring crew members’ eye health, an absorbent bed that filters trace contaminants from cabin air, and a separator pump from the waste-and-hygiene compartment.
Loaded with nearly 6,500 pounds of crew cargo and science experiments, Dragon arrived at the station on May 17 after launching two days earlier on a Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
For more than 25 years, people have lived and worked continuously aboard the International Space Station, advancing scientific knowledge and making research breakthroughs that would not be possible on Earth.
The space station helps NASA understand and overcome the challenges of human spaceflight, expand commercial opportunities in low Earth orbit, and build on the foundation for long-duration missions to the Moon, as part of the Artemis program, and to Mars.
