Astronauts from Turkey, Italy and Sweden return to Earth, ending private space station trip
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Astronauts from Turkey, Italy and Sweden returned to Earth on Friday, ending a private three-week mission to the International Space Station.
The trio were accompanied by a retired NASA astronaut who now works for Axiom Space, the Houston company that arranged the chartered flight. The crew returned in a SpaceX capsule that parachuted into the Atlantic off the Florida coast.
Turkey celebrated Alper Gezeravci’s launch from Cape Canaveral last month. A former fighter pilot and captain for Turkish Airlines, he became the first person from his country to fly in space.
Gezeravci was joined on the trip by Italian Air Force Col. Walter Villadei, Sweden’s Marcus Wandt, a former fighter pilot chosen as a reserve astronaut by the European Space Agency in 2022 and Michael Lopez-Alegria, their escort.
Turkey, Italy and Sweden financed the mission, paying roughly $55 million apiece. It was Axiom’s third private mission to the space station; the fourth is planned later this year.
Related articles
Chinese readers find new passion for scientific literature
A woman visits the 2024 Beijing Book Fair in Beijing, capital of China, Jan. 11, 2024. (Xinhua/Ju Hu2024-04-30Tip leads to arrest in cold case killing of off
BALTIMORE (AP) — Baltimore prosecutors on Wednesday announced the arrest of a man in the cold case h2024-04-30Arakan Army attacks another junta border outpost in western Myanmar — Radio Free Asia
Arakan Army rebels began an offensive against a junta police outpost on the Bangladesh border on Wed2024-04-30Bizarre $1,000 ballet flat sneakers take the fashion world by storm
Ballet flats are back and more popular than ever - but they're not the latest craze that's making a2024-04-30Chinese military ready to boost ties with Indonesian counterpart: defense spokesperson
The Chinese military is willing to work with its Indonesian counterpart to further consolidate strat2024-04-30NCAA fast tracks rule change to make multi
NCAA athletes will be immediately eligible to play no matter how many times they transfer — as long2024-04-30
atest comment