The UAE space program has announced the successful return of astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi from the International Space Station (ISS).
The SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft carrying Al Neyadi undocked from the International Space Station at 3:05 PM (UAE time) on September 3, and landed off the coast of Jacksonville, Florida at 8:17 AM (UAE time) on September 4.
Al Neyadi conducted over 200 advanced research experiments and studies that took about 585 hours in collaboration with 10 international space agencies and 25 esteemed UAE and global universities.
The experiments covered a range of topics including the cardiovascular system, back pain, protein crystallization growth, epigenetics, immune system, fluid dynamics, plant biology, human life sciences, material science, sleep analysis and radiation, advanced exploration technologies.
Al Neyadi returned to earth aboard the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft along with his Crew-6 crewmates, NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Woody Hoburg, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev after six months on the ISS.
The spacecraft completed its deorbit burn ahead of a splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Jacksonville, Florida. Four minutes before splashdown, the drogue parachutes deployed at an altitude of about 18,000 feet, helping arrest the Dragon’s velocity of approximately 560 km per hour. In less than a minute, the main parachutes deployed at about 6,000 feet, helping the spacecraft make a safe descent.
The UAE Astronaut Program, one of the projects managed by MBRSC under the UAE’s National Space Program and funded by the ICT Fund of the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA), aims to support research and development in the ICT sector in the UAE and promote the country’s integration on the global stage.
