‘It Came to Life:’ NASA astronauts describe experiencing splashdown in SpaceX Dragon

Douche Hurley and Bob Behnken, NASA astronauts, described in detail how it felt and sounded like when SpaceX’s spaceship crashed back into Earth for a successful splash in the Gulf of Mexico over the weekend.

The astronauts said they were surprised at how similar the experience was to what SpaceX had prepared for them.

The astronauts answered questions from NASA’s Johnson Space Center on Tuesday for the first time since landing back on their home planet.

Hurley and Behnken launched on the SpaceX Dragon capsule, nicknamed Endeavor, from Kennedy Space Center on May 30, and arrived the next day on the International Space Station. The launch marked the first human spaceflight off the coast of Florida in nearly nine years.

After more than two months in space, the duo in Dragon Endeavor traveled back to Earth in 19 End, and he slept overnight in the spaceship before the splashdown.

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The landing Sunday went smoothly by all accounts, as the spacecraft slowly sank in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, while Tropical Storm Isaias barred on the Atlantic coast of Florida. The event marked the first splashdown of space travel in 45 years.

Behnken and Hurley both said that the SpaceX videos showed them what they would see and hear and when they would experience it. The videos were recorded when the SpaceX Crew Dragon made its first voyage to the ISS, but without astronauts on board last year.

Behnken walked through each step that described the coming to Earth.

The first part of the de-orbit events occurred when the spacecraft separated from the trunk while Dragon was still in a low-Earth orbit.

“All the trick-or-treater separation events through the parachute fire department seemed to hit a lot on the back of the chair with a baseball bat, you know, just a crack,” Behnken said.

Next, when the Dragon began to burn his deerbit, the capsule began to return to Earth.

“As we descended through the atmosphere, I was personally amazed at how quickly all the events happened. It seemed that only a few minutes later after the fire was full, we could see out the windows and see the clouds at a much faster pace, “said Behnken.

Behnken said the two continued to talk to each other while experiencing 4.2 G forces, even cracking a few jokes.

While the spaceship’s heat shield protects the capsule and the astronauts, Behnken described a ‘warming of the capsule on the inside’ as it descended through the Earth’s atmosphere.

Behnken said next, before the parachutes deployed, they could feel Crew Dragon maneuvering himself for reloading with the help of his thrusters.

‘It came alive. It started firing thrusters and kept us pointing in the right direction, the atmosphere started to make noise, you can hear that rumble outside the car, ”said Behnken. ‘It does not sound like a machine. It sounds like an animal coming through the atmosphere. ”

The astronauts could feel the flares, first the drogue windows, then deploy the main parachutes as the spaceship slowed down from 350 mph to near 15 mph for splashdown.

Behnken said “it was a very important disturbance” when the parachutes deployed.

Hurley and Behnken both complimented the teams at SpaceX who built the spaceship.

“The red was rocky until the nominal drogue (parachute) deployment,” Hurley said, adding later, “My compliments to SpaceX and the Commercial Crew Program, the car performed just as it should.”

The launch, docking and splashdown marked the definitive test flight for the SpaceX astronaut capsule before NASA can issue a certification for regular flights for its astronauts. The spacecraft will be extensively inspected and refurbished before flying another astronaut crew next year.

After landing in the Gulf, the astronauts had to wait about an hour before the breakfast was opened and they were helped. That wait was thanks in part to some curious boaters who approached despite the Coast Guard trying to warn them and then because of a potential steam hazard.

While waiting, the astronauts used the satellite phone to make a few calls. They shouted all the numbers they could remember, according to Hurley, including the flight director in Houston.

” Hello, these are Bob and Doug, we’re in the ocean, ” Hurley said as they told the flight director.

The astronauts then called their wives, who were in Houston together, to tell them they had a safe landing.

‘If you have been through this as a family member, you are somewhat helpless until you hear the voice of your loved one on the other side and this was a great opportunity to trust her that we were in the water. We were OK. We felt good, ‘said Hurley.

After emerging from the spacecraft, the astronauts were airlifted to land. Then with jet back to Houston, where they enjoyed pizza, their first meal on Earth in over 60 days.

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