Residents along the Florida coast and beyond were treated to a dazzling celestial display late Sunday night as the Dragon capsule made its return journey to Earth.
The capsule had been in space for six months as part of a mission to the International Space Station and splashed down off the Florida coast around midnight.
Advance alerts kept cameras rolling
Local weather agencies, including the First Coast News Most Accurate Weather Team, had alerted the public about the impending event over the weekend.
As a result, several people and weather enthusiasts from regions stretching from St. Augustine to southeast Georgia had their cameras ready.
The excitement was not limited to just those in the immediate area. Visual accounts of Dragon capsule’s descent were shared across social media platforms
Audible signs of arrival: The sonic boom
Meteorologists and laypeople alike reported an attention-grabbing sonic boom shortly after the capsule’s reentry. The unmistakable sound served as a wakeup call for neighborhoods.
Crew-6: A diverse group returns from space
The capsule was transporting four Crew-6 astronauts back to Earth.
The crew included NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Woody Hoburg, Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev, and UAE astronaut Sultan Alneyadi.
They had embarked on their mission from the Kennedy Space Center on March 2, 2023, and after completing a successful six-month tenure.
