Capsule Carrying 2 Russians and 1 American Heads to Earth from Space Station

File photo: This illustration provided by SpaceX in 2024 depicts a spacewalk from the Dragon capsule. (SpaceX via AP)
File photo: This illustration provided by SpaceX in 2024 depicts a spacewalk from the Dragon capsule. (SpaceX via AP)
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Capsule Carrying 2 Russians and 1 American Heads to Earth from Space Station

File photo: This illustration provided by SpaceX in 2024 depicts a spacewalk from the Dragon capsule. (SpaceX via AP)
File photo: This illustration provided by SpaceX in 2024 depicts a spacewalk from the Dragon capsule. (SpaceX via AP)

A Russian space capsule undocked from the International Space Station on Monday to take three astronauts back to Earth, two of them completing a record-long stay on the orbiting laboratory.
The capsule carrying Russians Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub and American Tracy Dyson is expected to land in the vast Kazakhstan steppe about 3 1/2 hours after the undocking, said The Associated Press.
Kononenko and Chub blasted off for the space station on Sept. 15, 2023, and on Friday set the record for the longest continuous mission on the ISS. Dyson, in her third mission into outer space, spent six months aboard.
Eight astronauts remain on the space station, including Americans Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who have remained long past their scheduled return to Earth.
They arrived in June as the first crew of Boeing´s new Starliner capsule. But their trip was marred by thruster troubles and helium leaks, and the US space agency NASA decided it was too risky to return them on Starliner.
The two astronauts will ride home with SpaceX next year.



Record Cold Grips Argentina, Chile and Uruguay

The three South American countries have all recorded sharply below-zero temperatures as the polar air originated from Antarctica and swept across the region. SEBASTIAN LOSADA / AFP
The three South American countries have all recorded sharply below-zero temperatures as the polar air originated from Antarctica and swept across the region. SEBASTIAN LOSADA / AFP
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Record Cold Grips Argentina, Chile and Uruguay

The three South American countries have all recorded sharply below-zero temperatures as the polar air originated from Antarctica and swept across the region. SEBASTIAN LOSADA / AFP
The three South American countries have all recorded sharply below-zero temperatures as the polar air originated from Antarctica and swept across the region. SEBASTIAN LOSADA / AFP

A polar air mass has brought record low temperatures to Argentina, Chile and Uruguay, causing at least 15 deaths and forcing governments to restrict gas supplies and activate emergency shelters.

The three South American countries have all recorded sharply below-zero temperatures as the polar air originated from Antarctica and swept across the region, said AFP.

In Argentina, at least nine homeless people have died from the cold this winter, according to NGO Proyecto 7.

The capital Buenos Aires recorded its lowest temperature since 1991 at -1.9 degrees Celcius (28.6 Fahrenheit) on Wednesday, while the coastal city of Miramar saw snow for the first time in 34 years. Further south, the town of Maquinchao recorded -18C on Tuesday.

Electricity demand caused cuts across Buenos Aires, leaving thousands without power for over 24 hours in some areas.

The government suspended gas supplies to industries and petrol stations Wednesday to ensure household supplies, and removed price controls on gas cylinders Thursday.

Desert snow

Uruguay declared a nationwide "red alert" after six people died, allowing President Yamandu Orsi's government to forcibly move homeless people to shelters.

Montevideo recorded its lowest maximum temperature since 1967 at 5.8C on June 30, according to meteorologist Mario Bidegain.

Chile also activated homeless shelter plans during the coldest days. The city of Chillan, 400 kilometers (250 miles) south of Santiago, hit -9.3C, according to the Chilean Meteorological Directorate.

"What happened this week in Chile and the Southern Cone in general is a cold wave caused by an escape of a polar air mass from Antarctica," climatologist Raul Cordero from the University of Santiago told AFP.

Snow even fell in parts of the Atacama Desert, the world's driest, for the first time in a decade.

"It is not so common for these cold air masses to extend so far north, so we cannot rule out that this is also caused by climate change," meteorologist Arnaldo Zuniga told AFP.

The region expects relief in the coming days, with Buenos Aires reaching 12C on Thursday, Montevideo 14C and Santiago 24.7C.

"I was quite surprised by the change from cold to hot -- the change was very drastic," student Dafne Naranjo, 18, said in Santiago.

Climatologist Cordero said heatwaves have become more frequent than cold spells in recent years.

"The frequency of heatwaves has tripled, whether in summer or winter, not only in the Southern Cone but throughout the world," he said.