MONDAY, AUGUST 3 , 2020. THE WASHINGTON POST EZ RE A
also took extra precautions be-
cause of the coronavirus pandem-
ic. The crews on the ship were
tested and quarantined, and ev-
eryone was to be wearing masks.
Each of the astronauts gave a
thumbs-up as they were wheeled
off the spacecraft on a stretcher —
a routine practice for astronauts
who’ve experience a prolonged
period without gravity.
“Thank you for doing the most
important parts and most diffi-cult parts of human spaceflight,
sending us into orbit and bring-
ing us home safely,” said
Behnken, who was first out of the
capsule. “Thank you very much
for the good ship Endeavour.”
Hurley came out moments lat-
er. “For anyone who’s touched
Endeavour, you should take a
moment to cherish this day, given
everything that’s happened this
year,” he said.
Behnken and Hurley were
scheduled to fly back to Houston
on Sunday to be reunited with
their families.
Hurley and Behnken are both
married to astronauts they met in
their astronaut class 20 years ago.
While Hurley’s wife, Karen Ny-
berg, is no longer in the astro-
nauts corps, Benhken’s wife, Me-
gan McArthur, is. She’s scheduled
to fly to the space station in the
spring on the very same space-
craft that brought her husband
home Sunday.
Before that happens, NASA
and SpaceX will evaluate the cap-
sule to make sure it performed as
expected. If all goes according to
plan, SpaceX’s next human space-
flight mission could come within
six weeks.
[email protected]
[email protected]Bridenstine said. “It’s a big area
we have to clear, and it’s probably
going to take more resources....
We need to do a better job next
time for sure.”
Technicians aboard the Go
Navigator also briefly delayed
opening the hatch because of a
buildup of harmful fumes around
the capsule. Mission controllers
dete cted higher-than-appropri-
ate amounts of “hypergolic
fumes,” or fumes that could ex-
plode when coming in contact
with one another. Tests found no
toxic fumes inside the capsule.
NASA and SpaceX said theyenced two small hiccups. After
the spacecraft splashed down,
private boaters quickly surround-
ed the Endeavour before SpaceX
safety crews could shoo them
away. One boat with a Trump flag
came mere yards from spacecraft.
The Coast Guard had cleared a
10-nautical-mile safe zone
around the landing site, NASA
and SpaceX officials said, but it
was quickly breached.
“We had all the clearance that
was required at landing. That
capsule was in the water for a
good period of time and the boats
just made a bee line for it,”and all. The heat shield withstood
temperatures that left the once
bright-white capsule looking like
a toasted marshmallow.
Rescue crews descended on the
Dragon spacecraft minutes after
it landed, stabilizing the capsule
as it bobbed in the water, check-
ing to make sure there were no
propellant leaks and gathering
the parachutes. The spacecraft
was then hoisted onto the deck of
the Go Navigator recovery ship,
where medical personnel were
waiting to check out Hurley and
Behnken.
The recovery process experi-craft undocked from the space
station at 7:35 p.m. Eastern time
Saturday w hile it was orbiting the
Earth at 17,500 mph, or more than
22 times the speed of sound. On
Sunday, about an hour before
splashdown, it fired its engines
for one final burn that began its
descent home. As it plunged into
the thickening atmosphere, the
friction generated enormous
heat, as high as 3,500 degrees.
The capsule, named Endeav-
our by its crew in homage to the
space shuttle of the same name,
appeared to weather the trip
home successfully, scorch marksNASA and SpaceX had designat-
ed seven potential landing tar-
gets, four of them in the gulf, and
SpaceX had positioned recovery
craft in both locations for any
eventuality.
SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft
flo ated under a quartet of para-
chutes and splashed down travel-
ing 15 mph at 2:48 p.m. Eastern
time, exactly on time, marking
the first time NASA astronauts
had landed at sea since Apollo-
Soyuz, the joint U.S.-Soviet mis-
sion in 1975.
“On behalf of the SpaceX and
NASA t eams, welcome home and
thanks for flying SpaceX,” mis-
sion control radioed to the space-
craft after it landed.
“It’s truly our honor and privi-
lege,” Hurley responded. “On be-
half of the Dragon Endeavour,
congrats to NASA and SpaceX.”
The mission — the final mile-
stone in a rigorous test program
years in the making — was cele-
brated as a victory for NASA and
its decision under President Ba-
rack Obama to entrust the private
sector with the lives of its astro-
nauts. And it served as a rare
bright spot in a year full of tur-
moil and devastation, from the
deadly coronavirus pandemic to
the social unrest in the wake of
George Floyd’s killing to the
clas hes between protesters and
authorities in cities from Port-
land, Ore., to Richmond.
Instead of scenes of exhausted
hospital workers, smoke-filled
streets, and mounting death tolls
from a virus that continues to
spread, here were a pair of astro-
nauts, smiling and giving a
thumbs-up as flight technicians
helped them from their space-
craft in a scene reminiscent of the
early days of the space program.
And it came just days after anoth-
er triumphant moment for NASA,
the launch of the Mars Persever-
ance rover, which is expected to
reach the Red Planet in February.
Shortly after the May 30
launch of the astronauts into
orbit, SpaceX founder Elon Musk
grew emotional as he talked
about the responsibility of getting
the astronauts, both fathers to
young boys, back to their families
safely.
To make it home, the space-
LANDING FROM A
SpaceX capsule back home after ‘extraordinary mission’
BILL INGALLS/NASA
NASA astronauts Bob Behnken, left, and Doug Hurley give a thumbs-up inside the SpaceX Dragon s pacecraft onboard the Go Navigator
recovery ship shortly after having landed off the coast of Pensacola, Fla., after their journey to t he International Space Station.“For anyone who’s
touched Endeavour, you
should take a moment
to cherish this day,
given everything that’s
happened this year.”
Doug Hurley, NASA astronautRace in AmericaA Conversation with Beverly Johnsonand Tina Knowles-LawsonHosted by The Post’s Karen Attiah on Tues. August 4 at 12:00 p.m. ETTo receive a live stream reminder for this event, visit washingtonpostlive.comBeverly JohnsonSupermodel, Activist and CEOof Beverly Johnson EnterprisesTina Knowles-LawsonDesigner, Activist and Philanthropist