US Astronaut Returns to Earth on Russian Spacecraft
2022-03-31
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1An American astronaut has arrived back to Earth after spending 355 days at the International Space Station, a U.S. record.
2NASA's Mark Vande Hei landed in a Russian Soyuz capsule on Wednesday in Kazakhstan.
3He flew back to Earth with Russian Space Agency's Pyotr Dubrov and Anton Shkaplerov.
4Dubrov had also spent the last year in space.
5Vande Hei was the last one out of the capsule.
6He smiled and waved as he was carried to a chair in the open Kazakh grasslands.
7"It's beautiful out here," Vande Hei said.
8Despite rising tensions between the United States and Russia over Vladimir Putin's war with Ukraine, Vande Hei's return followed a usual process.
9A small NASA team of doctors was on hand for the touchdown.
10The medical workers planned to return immediately to Texas with the 55-year-old Vande Hei.
11Even before Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Vande Hei said he was avoiding the subject with his two Russian crewmates at the International Space Station.
12Vande Hei and Dubrov launched on April 9, 2021.
13Shkaplerov joined them at the International Space Station last October.
14"People have problem on Earth. On orbit ... we are one crew," Shkaplerov said in a live NASA TV broadcast Tuesday.
15The space station, he added, represents "friendship and cooperation and ... future of exploration of space."
16The war tensions have affected other areas of space.
17Europe has suspended satellite launches on Russian rockets and the Europe-Russia Mars rover will be stuck on Earth for another two years.
18Vande Hei beat NASA's previous record for the longest single spaceflight by 15 days.
19Dubrov moved into Russia's top five.
20"Broken records mean we're making progress," said retired NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, whose record Vande Hei broke.
21Kelly ended his own 340-day mission in 2016.
22Like Kelly, Vande Hei had medical testing during his long stay to help in NASA's effort to get astronauts back to the moon and on to Mars.
23Vande Hei said daily meditation helped him stay mentally strong during the mission.
24"I've had an indoor job 24-7 for almost a year so I am looking forward to being outside no matter what kind of weather," Vande Hei said in a recent NASA video.
25He added that he is most looking forward to making a cup of coffee for himself and his wife, Julie.
26I'm Ashley Thompson.
1An American astronaut has arrived back to Earth after spending 355 days at the International Space Station, a U.S. record. 2NASA's Mark Vande Hei landed in a Russian Soyuz capsule on Wednesday in Kazakhstan. He flew back to Earth with Russian Space Agency's Pyotr Dubrov and Anton Shkaplerov. Dubrov had also spent the last year in space. 3Vande Hei was the last one out of the capsule. He smiled and waved as he was carried to a chair in the open Kazakh grasslands. 4"It's beautiful out here," Vande Hei said. 5Despite rising tensions between the United States and Russia over Vladimir Putin's war with Ukraine, Vande Hei's return followed a usual process. A small NASA team of doctors was on hand for the touchdown. The medical workers planned to return immediately to Texas with the 55-year-old Vande Hei. 6Even before Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Vande Hei said he was avoiding the subject with his two Russian crewmates at the International Space Station. 7Vande Hei and Dubrov launched on April 9, 2021. Shkaplerov joined them at the International Space Station last October. 8"People have problem on Earth. On orbit ... we are one crew," Shkaplerov said in a live NASA TV broadcast Tuesday. The space station, he added, represents "friendship and cooperation and ... future of exploration of space." 9The war tensions have affected other areas of space. Europe has suspended satellite launches on Russian rockets and the Europe-Russia Mars rover will be stuck on Earth for another two years. 10Vande Hei beat NASA's previous record for the longest single spaceflight by 15 days. Dubrov moved into Russia's top five. 11"Broken records mean we're making progress," said retired NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, whose record Vande Hei broke. Kelly ended his own 340-day mission in 2016. 12Like Kelly, Vande Hei had medical testing during his long stay to help in NASA's effort to get astronauts back to the moon and on to Mars. Vande Hei said daily meditation helped him stay mentally strong during the mission. 13"I've had an indoor job 24-7 for almost a year so I am looking forward to being outside no matter what kind of weather," Vande Hei said in a recent NASA video. 14He added that he is most looking forward to making a cup of coffee for himself and his wife, Julie. 15I'm Ashley Thompson. 16The Associated Press reported this story. Ashley Thompson adapted it for VOA Learning English. 17__________________________________________________________________ 18Words in This Story 19capsule - n. a small part of a spacecraft that is separate from the rest of the spacecraft and that is where people live and work 20rover - n. a vehicle used for exploring the surface of a moon, planet, etc. 21meditation - n. the act or process of spending time in quiet thought : the act or process of meditating