NASA SpaceX Crew-1 Astronauts to Meet Media Online After Historic Mission

Astronauts from the SpaceX Crew-1 mission will be available Thursday to answer questions about their historic mission to the International Space Station (ISS) and their return to Earth.

A NASA press release said NASA astronauts Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover, and Shannon Walker, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Soichi Noguchi will participate in the media event at 3:45 p.m. EDT (1945H GMT) on Thursday, May 6. The event will air live on NASA TV, and stream on the NASA app and website.

The virtual availability, the release said, will have no media representatives present due to COVID-19 restrictions, but reporters could call in to participate. Social media users can send their questions using the hashtag #AskNASA.

SpaceX Crew-1: First of Six Space Missions

SpaceX's Crew-1's launch last November spearheaded by the space agency has been the first mission of a NASA-supported commercial human spacecraft in history. It is the first of the planned six flights of NASA and Space X as part of the agency's Commercial Crew Program.

The SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft named "Resilience," with Hopkins, Glover, Walker, and Noguchi onboard splashed down at the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday, May 2, off Panama City, Florida. It's the first nighttime splashdown with astronauts since 1968, when three astronauts on the Apollo 8 which first orbited the Moon, returned to Earth, the New York Times reported.

Recovery ships had been waiting to bring Crew Dragon out of the ocean, moving hastily as the strong waves could cause severe seasickness for the astronaut.

The astronauts then flew back to Houston to reunite with their families and colleagues.

Crew-1 Sets Record for Longest Space Mission

The crew's return marked the end of the first phase of the NASA-SpaceX mission, which has set a record for the longest in space, spanning over five months, by the crew that lifted off aboard a commercially built spacecraft.

It's the second mission NASA and SpaceX successfully brought astronauts home on board the Crew Dragon spacecraft. The Demo-2 mission with astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley also splashed down in August last year.

In their mission, Crew-1 astronauts did experiments on tissue chips that mimic human organs, and on the role of microgravity on human health and diseases and translate those results in improving human health on Earth. They also grew radishes in various types of light and soils in their attempt for food production in space, and likewise tried a new system in discarding heat from spacesuits.

In a remote press conference Monday, Hopkins indicated in a CNN report that he was not craving for anything sumptuous upon return, saying if he had an appetite, it would be a "bonus."

Astronaut Victor Glover Makes History

Glover, in particular, made history as the first Black person for a months-long mission on the ISS, apart from his first-ever space flight, CNN further reported.

According to Glover, looking back at Earth from 250 miles up in space had a "profound impact" on him, given what he has accomplished. He said he would never forget that moment, seeing how amazing the Earth is. With that experience, Glover urged that we must do all that we can to protect our planet.

The Crew Dragon spacecraft was named "Resilience" to honor the teams from NASA and SpaceX that worked amid the pandemic to launch the mission and the people all over the world who are grappling with COVID-19, apart from the racial injustices that sparked a huge outcry in the US in the months before the Crew-1 launch.

Check out more news and information on the SpaceX Crew-1 Mission on Science Times