NASA and SpaceX have targeted Crew-9’s splashdown aboard the Crew Dragon Freedom. The crew departed the International Space Station at 1:05 a.m. ET Tues., with an expected splashdown return on Tues., March 18. A deorbit burn, which will begin the crew’s descent back to earth, is scheduled for about 5:11 p.m. EDT.

The SpaceX capsule tasked with bringing back two NASA astronauts that have spent months on the International Space Station (ISS) after thruster issues following the launch of Boeing’s Starliner mission last year have now departed for Earth.

NASA's stuck astronauts are heading home now that a replacement crew has arrived at the International Space Station

Just over a day after blasting off, a SpaceX crew capsule arrived at the International Space Station on Sunday, delivering the replacements for NASA’s two stuck astronauts. The four newcomers—representing the U.