NASA's Crew 7 targets March 12 to return to Earth

New Delhi, March 9 (IANS) NASA’s Crew 7 astronauts onboard the International Space Station (ISS) are preparing to return to Earth, after a six-month stay in the orbiting lab, the US space agency has said.

In a statement, NASA said that the four crew members will return to Earth on the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, which is expected to undock from the space station at 11.05 a.m. on March 11. Depending on the weather conditions, the vehicle will splashdown off the Florida coast, as early as 5.35 a.m. on March 12.

The Crew 7 mission with NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov, launched to the ISS on August 26, last year.

With the recent arrival of four members of the Crew 8 mission, the ISS is currently housing 11 astronauts from the US, Europe, Russia and Japan.

The Crew 7 is “preparing to wrap up their nearly six-month science mission, and bring home time-sensitive research to Earth,” NASA said.

During their six months on the ISS, the Crew-7 conducted science experiments and technology demonstrations to benefit people on Earth and prepare humans for future space missions.

Their scientific milestones include a study on the impact of spaceflight on immune function; to eliminate contaminants from wastewater; growing food on station.

Outside the station, the team deployed two CubeSats that are low-cost alternative to traditional satellites