Russians, American Delayed In Space To Return In September
March 24, 2023 4:28PM CDT
This photo provided by NASA, astronauts NASA's Nicole Mann and Japan's Koichi Wakata venture out on a spacewalk at the International Space Station on Friday, Jan. 20, 2023. Their job was to install support struts for small solar panels launching this summer, part of a continuing effort by NASA to expand the space station's power grid. (NASA via AP)
MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s space agency says two cosmonauts and an astronaut who were supposed to leave the International Space Station this month will be brought back to Earth in late September.
The return of Russians Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin, and NASA’s Frank Rubio was delayed after the Soyuz capsule they planned to ride in developed a coolant leak.
An empty Soyuz was sent to the station to serve as a rescue capsule, delaying the launch of a replacement crew.
The Roscosmos space agency said Friday that a three-person replacement crew will head for the space station on Sept. 15, and Prokopyev, Petelin and Rubio will return on Sept. 27, doubling their time aboard the station to more than a year.
