28 October 2003 09:59
3 spacemen successfully return to Earth from ISS
The Soyuz TMA-2 capsule landed safely in its designated area near the town of Arkalyk in Kazakhstan at 5:40 a.m. Moscow time on Tuesday Russian Mission Control has reported.
The capsule's descent proceeded normally, search and rescue units deployed in the landing area have reported. The three-man crew of Russian cosmonaut Yury Malenchenko, NASA astronaut Eduard Lu and European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Pedro Duque feel well. They will also have to undergo a medical examination following their return to Earth.
Vladimir Popov, director of the aviation and space search and rescue centre, told Interfax that unprecedented security measures were taken during the Soyuz's descent. Twelve rescue helicopters and airplanes were in the descent area, with another airplane in the ballistic descent area. U.S. doctors and a NASA helicopter were working in the landing area for the first time. During their 184-day mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS), Malenchenko and Lu not only took care of the ISS, but were also engaged in various scientific experiments and research. In addition to this, Malenchenko was the first man to get married while he was on his space mission. On August 10, he married U.S. citizen of Russian descent Ekaterina Dmitriyev. ESA astronaut Duque from Spain was on a ten-day mission to the ISS to carry out a series of scientific experiments.
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