Two Russian cosmonauts and one NASA astronaut safely returned to Earth on April 20th after a seven-month mission on the International Space Station (ISS). The trio, consisting of Roscosmos cosmonauts Aleksey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner, and NASA astronaut Don Pettit, traveled back aboard a Roscosmos Soyuz capsule.
The Soyuz capsule touched down near Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, at 6:20 a.m. EDT. NASA reported that the crew spent 220 days in space, circling the Earth 3,520 times during their mission on the ISS.
Upon landing, the astronauts underwent thorough medical checkups before being transported to Karaganda, Kazakhstan, for further evaluations and rest. It is important to note that Don Pettit did not celebrate his 70th birthday on the day of landing. He was born on April 22, 1955, making him 69 years old.