Shubhanshu Shukla, the pilot of the Axiom Mission-4 from the Indian Space Research Organisation, successfully landed into the Pacific Ocean along with the rest of his crew on Tuesday.
The crew’s Dragon Spacecraft successfully splashed down, after deploying parachutes as it descended into earth’s orbit, according to SpaceX’s livestream.
Two fastboats approached the craft, wearing personal protective equipment and undertook “sniff checks”, a procedure to make sure the vessel is not emitting toxic fumes, before approaching the vessel.
Once the crew deemed the spacecraft safe, SpaceX’s recovery vessel ‘Shanon’ approached the craft and began the process of recovering the crew. The recovery vessel also had medical personnel on board to conduct health checkups on them.
The Axiom-4 crew will undergo a seven-day rehabilitation period to help them readjust to Earth’s gravity after their time in space. This mission is particularly significant as it marks the first time in over 40 years that India, Poland, and Hungary have sent astronauts into space.