![\"A](\"https:\/\/blogs.nasa.gov\/spacestation\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/240\/2020\/08\/spacex_crew_dragon_splashdown.jpg\")
<\/a>Two NASA astronauts,\u00a0Robert Behnken<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Douglas Hurley<\/a>,\u00a0splashed down safely\u00a0in the SpaceX Crew Dragon\u00a0\u201cEndeavour\u201d\u00a0in the Gulf of Mexico\u00a0off the coast of Pensacola, Florida,\u00a0at\u00a02:48 p.m. EDT.\u00a0It is\u00a0the first time a commercially built and operated American crew spacecraft\u00a0has\u00a0returned\u00a0from the\u00a0International Space Station<\/a>\u00a0to complete a test flight, beginning\u00a0a new era in human spaceflight.<\/p>\n NASA is continuing live coverage<\/a> of the recovery.<\/p>\n Teams\u00a0on the\u00a0Go Navigator\u00a0recovery ship, including two fast boats,\u00a0now are in the process of\u00a0securing\u00a0Crew Dragon\u00a0and ensuring the spacecraft is safed for the recovery effort.\u00a0As\u00a0the\u00a0fast boat teams complete their work, the recovery ship will move into position to hoist Crew Dragon\u00a0onto the main deck\u00a0of\u00a0Go Navigator\u00a0with Behnken and Hurley inside. Once on the main deck, the crew will\u00a0be taken out of the spacecraft and\u00a0receive medical checks before a helicopter ride to Pensacola to\u00a0board a plane\u00a0for Houston.<\/p>\n The duo arrived at the orbiting laboratory on May 31, following a successful launch on May 30 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. During their 62 days aboard station, Behnken and Hurley contributed more than 100 hours of time to supporting the\u00a0orbiting laboratory\u2019s investigations<\/a>, participated in public engagement events, and supported four spacewalks with Behnken and Cassidy to install new batteries in the station\u2019s power grid and upgrade other station hardware.<\/p>\n These activities are a part of\u00a0NASA\u2019s Commercial Crew Program<\/a>, which has been\u00a0working\u202fwith the U.S. aerospace industry to launch astronauts on American rockets and spacecraft from American soil the International Space Station for the first time since 2011.\u00a0This is SpaceX\u2019s final test flight and is providing data\u00a0about\u00a0the performance of the Falcon 9 rocket, Crew Dragon spacecraft and ground systems, as well as in-orbit, docking, splashdown and recovery operations.<\/p>\n The test flight also will help NASA certify SpaceX\u2019s crew transportation system for regular flights carrying astronauts to and from the space station. SpaceX is readying the hardware for the first rotational mission\u00a0that will\u00a0occur following NASA certification, which is expected to take about six weeks.<\/p>\n The goal of NASA\u2019s Commercial Crew Program is safe, reliable and cost-effective transportation to and from the International Space Station. This could allow for additional research time and increase the opportunity for discovery aboard humanity\u2019s testbed for exploration, including helping us prepare for human exploration of the Moon and Mars.<\/p>\n More details about the mission and\u00a0NASA\u2019s commercial crew program can be found in the\u00a0press kit online<\/a>\u00a0and by following the\u00a0commercial crew blog<\/a>,\u00a0@commercial_crew<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0commercial crew on Facebook<\/a>.<\/p>\n Learn more about station activities by following\u202f@space_station<\/a>\u202fand\u00a0@ISS_Research<\/a><\/p>\n on Twitter as well as the\u202fISS Facebook<\/a>\u202fand\u202fISS Instagram<\/a>\u202faccounts.<\/p>\n Get The Details…<\/a><\/p>\n Mark Garcia <\/p>\n Powered by WPeMatico<\/a><\/small><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Two NASA astronauts, Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley, splashed down safely in the SpaceX Crew Dragon “Endeavour” in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, at 2:48 p.m. EDT. It is the first time a commercially built and operated American crew spacecraft has returned from the International Space Station to complete a test flight, beginning a new era in human spaceflight. NASA is continuing live coverage of the recovery. Teams on … Continue reading