Air & Space Smithsonian – September 2019

BILL

INGALLS/NASA

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U.S. Astronaut Anne McClain receives a

little help as she exits the Soyuz spacecraft

that returned her to Earth from the

International Space Station (ISS) in June.

The Soyuz MS-11 capsule landed safely

near Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, where

a slide helped the crew manage the last

seven feet of a 250-mile descent.

McClain and fellow returnees (not

pictured) David Saint-Jacques (of

Canada) and Oleg Kononenko (of

Russia) spent 204 days aboard the ISS

performing scientific studies and main-

taining the station.

Homecoming from the ISS is the

ultimate thrill ride. The Soyuz capsule

detaches from the station, fires its

thrusters to deorbit, drops its instru-

mentation and docking modules, and

makes a fiery atmospheric reentry.

After about 20 minutes of radio-silent

plummeting through the atmosphere,

the capsule deploys two parachutes at

an altitude of around 30,000 feet with

a distinct jolt, followed by a main chute

at around 24,000 feet—jolt number

two. After his 2011 stay on the station,

astronaut Scott Kelly said, “Even if I had

hated the last six months, I would have

done it all again for that last 20 minutes

in the Soyuz.”

About a second before touchdown,

the Soyuz fires retro rockets to soften the

impact. But it still lands with a thump.

September 2019 AIR&SPACE 9

■ ZACH ROSENBERG IS AN ASSOCIATE EDITOR AT

AIR & SPACE/SMITHSONIAN.