Türkiye’s first astronaut set to return to Earth

Turkish first astronaut Alper Gezeravcı's space mission has approached its end as he and the three other astronauts from the Ax-3 team will begin their journey back to Earth with the Dragon capsule on Feb. 3.

A farewell ceremony for the Ax-3 team was held on Feb. 2 at 5:50 p.m. Turkish time. The ceremony was broadcast live on Axiom Space's social media accounts. Gezeravcı and the team are expected to undock from the International Space Station (ISS) on Feb. 3 at 2 p.m. Turkish time. The journey back to Earth will take 12 hours.

The planned landing is expected to take place at one of seven potential landing sites in the Atlantic Ocean east of the U.S. state of Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the west, on a water or sand surface. Technical details such as weather, wind, atmospheric pressure, and fuel conditions when the capsule ascends below the atmosphere will determine the optimal location to land. Gravitational force and the fuel will exert resistance against each other, allowing the capsule to reach Earth at a certain speed.

Astronauts who spend their days in space without gravity may initially have a difficult time adapting to the conditions of Earth. Therefore, they may experience partial loss of consciousness and inability to walk when they first land.

Following the landing, Gezeravcı will first go to a NASA center where he will be kept under observation for health checks before returning to Türkiye in around a week. Upon his eagerly awaited return, Gezeravcı will visit schools and universities to share the findings of the experiments he performed in space with academicians and students.

Gezeravcı conducted 13 experiments in space during his two-week mission aboard the ISS.