SpaceX’s Polaris Dawncrew has returned to Earth after five days in orbit, following a historic mission featuring the world’s first commercial spacewalk, the BBC reports.
The Dragon capsule made splashdown off the coast of Florida shortly after 03:37 local time (07:37 GMT), in an event stream lived by SpaceX.
“Splashdown of Dragon confirmed! Welcome back to Earth,” SpaceX said on social media platform X.
The US space agency Nasa said the mission represented “a giant leap forward” for the commercial space industry.
Re-entering earth’s atmosphere, the spacecraft neared temperatures of 1,900C (3,500 degrees Fahrenheit), caused by the intense pressure and friction of pushing through the air at around 7,000mph (27,000kph).
The four-member civilian team, bankrolled and led by billionaire Jared Isaacman, travelled further into space than any humans for more than fifty years.
Scott Poteet, a retired US Air Force pilot, and SpaceX employees Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon were also on the crew.
