EMIRATI astronaut Sultan al Neyadi and the rest of the crew-6 mission arrived back to earth safely after ending his historic six-month mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
The SpaceX capsule parachuted into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Jacksonville, Florida on Monday morning.
Capsules transporting astronauts back to Earth by landing on the ground or splashing down on water has been a decades-long tradition.
SpaceX welcomed the team through a post on the social media account x.
Meanwhile, UAE President Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed praised al Neyadi for his major achievements in space exploration and celebrated his journey back home.
Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, the vice president of the UAE and ruler of Dubai, also congratulated him on his safe return and hailed him for inspiring millions of Arab youth to contribute positively to humanity’s scientific efforts.
He was initially scheduled to return by the end of August but has been delayed due to unfavorable weather conditions on the splashdown site.
Al Neyadi and the rest of his colleagues who were part of the crew-6 mission spent 184 days on board the ISS.
Al Neyadi will undergo several days of medical testing, mission debriefs, and evaluation before returning to the UAE.
