Stranded astronauts splash down after 286 days in space

The SpaceX Dragon splashed down next to a pod of dolphins off the coast of Florida.

Transcript

00:00We are awaiting the drogue deploys. This view coming from the WB-57 high-altitude plane,

00:05and there you see it on your screen, drogue deployment.

00:12You can hear the crowd here.

00:19We can see the crew there using their restraints as resting places for their arms.

00:26They were just in space moments ago, so their arms were able to float freely.

00:34400 meters.

00:37And we're going to stand by for splashdown,

00:40located in the Gulf of America, off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida.

00:45And splashdown, Crew-9 back on Earth.

01:06And SpaceX Freedom, splashdown. Good main release.

01:15And there you have it. The side hatch is open for the first time

01:45since September. We can see folks on board clapping as our first crew member.

01:53And that is NASA astronaut Nick Haig, commander of Crew-9.

01:59Now out of Crew Dragon Freedom.

02:05Some smiles, thumbs up, and a wave. Can't get any better than that.

02:10Once again, big smile.

02:15Oh, looks like we're getting our next crew member here.

02:22That is none other than Sonny Williams. Big smile, big waves.

02:37Once again, some elation and cheers there from Butch Wilmore.

02:44As we mentioned before, returning to Earth from, coming from a microgravity environment,

02:50can wreak havoc on the body.