CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — The first astronauts launched by Elon Musk’s SpaceX company have left the International Space Station for the final and most important part of their test flight: returning to Earth with a rare splashdown. NASA’s Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken bid farewell to the three men left behind as their SpaceX Dragon capsule undocked Saturday night. The capsule is headed toward a Sunday afternoon descent into the Gulf of Mexico near Pensacola, on the opposite side of Florida from approaching Tropical Storm Isaias. It will be the first splashdown for astronauts in 45 years — and the first return of a crew by SpaceX.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
This photo provided by NASA shows, from left, front, astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley during an interview on the International Space Station on Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020. Behnken and Hurley are scheduled to leave the International Space Station in a SpaceX capsule on Saturday and splashdown off the coast of Florida on Sunday. (NASA via AP)
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