Following their successful return to Earth after nearly six months aboard the International Space Station (ISS), the crew of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-6 mission will hold a news conference at 2:15 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, September 12, at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. This event will be broadcast live on NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agency’s website.
They also talked about the importance of space exploration. “Space exploration is important because it allows us to learn more about our place in the universe,” said Lindgren. “It also helps us to develop new technologies that can benefit people on Earth.”
The crew members are now in quarantine, as is required for all astronauts returning from space. They will be released from quarantine in the coming days and will then return to their homes and families.
The Crew-6 mission was the first of six planned SpaceX crewed missions to the ISS under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. The next SpaceX crewed mission, Crew-7, is scheduled to launch in October 2023.
The news conference will feature NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Woody Hoburg, along with UAE astronaut Sultan Alneyadi, sharing insights about their mission. Regrettably, Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev, another crew member, will be unable to participate in the news conference due to travel constraints.
For media participation in the virtual event, it is essential to contact NASA Johnson’s newsroom no later than two hours before the event’s commencement by calling 281-483-5111 or emailing [email protected]. Reporters interested in asking questions during the news conference must dial in by 2:05 p.m. on the day of the event. Additionally, questions can be submitted via social media using the hashtag #AskNASA.
Crew-6 returned to Earth on September 4, splashing down off the coast of Jacksonville, Florida, aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft before returning to Houston. During their mission, the crew traveled an impressive 78,875,292 statute miles through 2,976 orbits around Earth over approximately 186 days. This mission marked the first spaceflight for astronauts Hoburg, Alneyadi, and Fedyaev, while it was the fourth for astronaut Stephen Bowen.
The crew’s time aboard the ISS was filled with accomplishments, including two spacewalks conducted by Bowen and Hoburg, and a historic spacewalk by Alneyadi, making him the first UAE astronaut to conduct such an extravehicular activity. Bowen, with 10 spacewalks throughout his missions, tied the record for the most spacewalks by a U.S. astronaut, shared with four others. He now ranks third on the all-time list for cumulative hours of spacewalking.
Their stay on the ISS was marked by significant contributions to various experiments and technology demonstrations. These included a student robotic challenge, research on plant genetic adaptations to space, and studies on human health in microgravity. These endeavors aim to prepare for exploration beyond low Earth orbit and to provide benefits to life on Earth. Additionally, the crew released Saskatchewan’s first satellite, which serves as a testbed for a novel radiation detection and protection system inspired by melanin, a pigment found in many organisms, including humans.
Crew-6 also had the opportunity to spend approximately a week with the newly arrived crew of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 mission, which docked to the station on August 27. During this overlap, the outgoing Crew-6 handed over ongoing tasks and introduced two first-time space explorers to the orbital outpost. Both missions are part of NASA‘s Commercial Crew Program.