International Space Station Astronauts Land Safely in Kazakhstan

Nov. 18, 2012

Rachel Kraft
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
rachel.h.kraft@nasa.gov

Jenny Knotts
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
norma.j.knotts@nasa.gov




RELEASE: 12-404

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION ASTRONAUTS LAND SAFELY IN KAZAKHSTAN

HOUSTON -- Three members of the Expedition 33 crew undocked from the
International Space Station and returned safely to Earth Sunday,
wrapping up a mission lasting more than four months.

Expedition 33 Commander Sunita Williams of NASA, Flight Engineer
Akihiko Hoshide of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and Russian
Soyuz Commander Yuri Malenchenko undocked their Soyuz TMA-05M
spacecraft from the space station at 4:26 p.m. CST and landed north
of Arkalyk, Kazakhstan, at 7:56 p.m. (7:56 a.m., Nov. 19, Kazakhstan
time). The trio arrived at the station July 17 and spent 127 days in
space, 125 of which were aboard the orbiting laboratory. This was the
first pre-dawn landing in darkness for a station crew since April 9,
2006, when Expedition 12 crew members returned.

NASA astronaut Kevin Ford took command of the space station on Nov.
18. When the Soyuz spacecraft undocked from the space station,
Expedition 34 began. Ford and his crewmates, Russian cosmonauts Oleg
Novitskiy and Evgeny Tarelkin, will tend to the station as a
three-man crew for one month until the arrival of three new crew
members, including NASA astronaut Tom Marshburn.

Expedition 33 advanced the scope of research aboard the station by
conducting a wide range of physical science, Earth observation and
technology demonstration investigations. Research included testing
radiation levels on the orbiting outpost, assessing how microgravity
affects the spinal cord, and investigating dynamic processes on
Earth, such as melting glaciers, seasonal changes and human impacts
on the ecosystem.

The crew also participated in the Integrated Resistance and Aerobic
Training Study-Sprint, which evaluates the use of high-intensity,
low-volume exercise training to minimize loss of muscle, bone and
cardiovascular functions during long-duration missions. The
expedition also managed a number of visits by international and
commercial spacecraft, including the first contracted commercial
resupply flight by SpaceX, and conducted several challenging
spacewalks to sustain the productive operation of the orbiting
complex.

Williams, Hoshide and Malenchenko orbited Earth 2,032 times and
traveled 54,090,628 miles. Williams, who has spent 322 days in space
on two missions, now ranks sixth on the all-time U.S. endurance list,
and second all-time for a female. Malenchenko has spent 642 days in
space on his five flights, which ranks him seventh on the all-time
endurance list. During their mission, Williams and Hoshide performed
three spacewalks to replace a component that relays power from the
space station's solar arrays to its systems and repair an ammonia
leak on a station radiator. With 50 hours and 40 minutes, Williams
holds the record for total cumulative spacewalk time by a female
astronaut. Hoshide holds the record for total cumulative spacewalk
time by a JAXA astronaut at 21 hours and 23 minutes.

For more information about the International Space Station and its
crew, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/station


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