updates
Crew-2 splashes down after 199 days
On November 8, 2021, SpaceX said the Crew-2 astronauts splashed down off Pensacola at 10:33 p.m. EST after 199 days, then the longest U.S. spacecraft mission.
Topics: space-civilization
This page is an original Muskularity summary. It does not republish SpaceX’s full post. Figures are the company’s statements on the cited date unless another primary link is named.
Summary
Dragon and the Crew-2 crew returned after 199 days, which SpaceX called the longest mission for a U.S. spacecraft. Splashdown was off Pensacola, Florida, at 10:33 p.m. EST on November 8, 2021. The crew named, with links to agency biographies: Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur of NASA, Akihiko Hoshide of JAXA, and Thomas Pesquet of ESA. SpaceX recovered the capsule and planned to take it to Cape Canaveral for inspection and reuse.
Firsts SpaceX listed for the mission: two international partners on one Dragon crew, the first crew flight of a flight-proven Dragon and Falcon 9, and the first U.S. spacecraft to spend 199 consecutive days in orbit. The launch and docking side of the same mission is the April 24 post.
Key facts
| Fact | Label |
|---|---|
| Splashdown November 8, 2021, 10:33 p.m. EST, off Pensacola | Company mission report |
| 199 days, called the longest U.S. spacecraft mission at the time | Company duration claim |
| Crew: Kimbrough, McArthur, Hoshide, Pesquet | Company crew list, biographies linked |
Why it matters
Duration and reuse are the operational proof behind commercial crew, distinct from the test flight Demo-2. The 199-day figure is SpaceX’s comparison, stated on the day of splashdown.
On this site
Sources
- SpaceX update, November 8, 2021 — Grade A, company post
- NASA biography, Shane Kimbrough — Grade A, NASA
- NASA biography, Megan McArthur — Grade A, NASA
- JAXA biography, Akihiko Hoshide — Grade A, JAXA
- ESA biography, Thomas Pesquet — Grade A, ESA
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