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Watch LIVE: Nasa SpaceX astronauts splash back to Earth

2 August 2020, 19:13

NASA SpaceX Dragon Crew Return to Earth & Splashdown

By Kate Buck

Two astronauts are on their way back home to Earth after making history by blasting into space on the first commercial spacecraft, built by SpaceX.

Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley left the International Space Station after two months on the orbiting laboratory.

The pair are expected to land in the ocean off the coast of Florida at around 7.48pm UK time.

Their mission, named Demo-2, also marked the first time Nasa had launched astronauts from US soil in nine years.

SpaceX's astronaut carrier, the Crew Dragon, is expected to land in the water off Pensacola, western Florida.

The US space agency said this location is far away from Hurricane Isaias, which is expected to hit the eastern part of the state.

The last time astronauts made an ocean landing was on July 1975 during an Apollo mission.

The pair have spent the last two months in space
The pair have spent the last two months in space. Picture: PA

Since then, they have always landed on terra firma, using Nasa's Space Shuttle or the Russian space agency's Soyuz capsules.

If all goes to plan, the splashdown will usher in a new era for Nasa, which will have at least one commercial spacecraft ready to launch astronauts into space from US soil.

Watch everything live in the stream above.

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