What 220 days in space does to a 70-year-old: NASA's oldest serving astronaut looks frail as he returns to Earth after seven months on the ISS
After 220 days on board the International Space Station (ISS), Don Pettit, NASA's oldest serving astronaut, has finally returned to Earth.
Mr Pettit marked his 70th birthday by hurtling towards the Earth in a spacecraft, concluding a seven-month mission.
The astronaut and two Russian cosmonauts landed in Kazakhstan on a Soyuz capsule on Sunday - the day of Mr Pettit's milestone birthday.
Confirming the successful landing, NASA tweeted: 'Home sweet Houston. @NASA_Astronauts Don Pettit has officially returned home from the @Space_Station after completing his fourth spaceflight, totaling 590 days in space. A picture perfect mission.'
Pettit and his crewmates orbited the Earth 3,520 times and completed a journey of 93.3 million miles over the course of their mission.
And it appears his latest stint has taken its toll on his health, with the astronaut appearing noticeably more gaunt and frail than when he left Earth.
Taking to X, astronomer Jonathan McDowell voiced his concerns for Mr Pettit, describing him as 'less than fully well'.
'The awesome Don Pettit, who turned 70 today, appeared less than fully well on extraction from the capsule - hopefully nothing serious, but I'm looking forward to any update on his condition,' he said.
After 220 days on board the International Space Station (ISS), Don Pettit, NASA's oldest serving astronaut, has finally returned to Earth
Pettit and his crewmates orbited the Earth 3,520 times and completed a journey of 93.3 million miles over the course of their mission
The trio touched down in a remote area southeast of Kazakhstan after undocking from the space station just over three hours earlier
Over the course of his 29-year career, Mr Pettit, born in Oregan, has logged more than 18 months in orbit, with the latest spaceflight his fourth.
He is not, however, the oldest person to have ever flown in orbit - John Glenn, who died in 2016, flew on a NASA mission in 1998 at the grand old age of 77.
Following his return, several concerned space fans took to X to discuss his appearance.
'I'm pretty worried about Don. I'm not sure but I think he might have fainted while they carried him,' one user wrote.
Another added: 'I hope Don Pettit is ok, he did not look well at all when they extracted him from the capsule. It's his 70th today, veteran astronaut.'
However, NASA maintains that Mr Pettit is 'doing well and in the range of what is expected for him'.
'According to NASA officials at the landing site, is doing well and in the range of what is expected for him following return to Earth,' NASA tweeted.
'What's expected for him? In his own words during an April 16 pre-departure interview, "This is a physiological thing. It affects different people different ways. Some people can go out and eat pizza and dance. When I land, it takes me about 24 hours to feel like I'm a human being again."'
NASA maintains that Mr Pettit is 'doing well and in the range of what is expected for him'
Over the course of his 29-year career, Mr Pettit, born in Oregan, has logged more than 18 months in orbit, with the latest spaceflight his fourth
Taking to X, astronomer Jonathan McDowell voiced his concerns for Mr Pettit, describing him as 'less than fully well'
'I'm pretty worried about Don. I'm not sure but I think he might have fainted while they carried him,' one user wrote
'According to NASA officials at the landing site, is doing well and in the range of what is expected for him following return to Earth,' NASA tweeted
The trio touched down in a remote area southeast of Kazakhstan after undocking from the space station just over three hours earlier.
Picturesque images of the landing showed the small capsule parachuting down to Earth with the sunrise as a backdrop.
The astronauts gave thumbs-up gestures as rescuers carried them from the spacecraft to an inflatable medical tent.
Following the landing, Mr Pettit was set to fly to the Kazakh city of Karaganda before boarding a NASA plane to the agency's Johnson Space Center in Texas.
During their time on the ISS, the astronauts conducted research into areas such as water sanitisation technology, plant growth in various conditions and fire behavior in microgravity, NASA said.
The trio's seven-month trip was just short of the nine months that NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore, 62, and Suni Williams, 59, unexpectedly spent stuck on the orbital lab after the spacecraft they were testing suffered technical issues and was deemed unfit to fly them back to Earth.
Williams and Wilmore returned to Earth on March 19 aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule which splashed down off the coast of Florida.
The pair had left Earth in June last year, planning to undertake an eight-day test flight of the new Boeing Starliner capsule.
Mr Pettit returned to Earth with Russian cosmonauts Ivan Vagner (left), and Alexei Ovchinin (right)
During their time on the ISS , the astronauts conducted research into areas such as water sanitisation technology, plant growth in various conditions and fire behavior in microgravity, NASA said
The trio's seven-month trip was just short of the nine months that NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore, 62, and Suni Williams, 59, (both pictured), unexpectedly spent stuck on the orbital lab after the spacecraft they were testing suffered technical issues
However, after the Starliner capsule developed numerous technical issues during the flight, the astronauts were forced to wait until the next crew rotation to return to Earth.
In total, they spent 286 days in space - 278 days more than they had initially planned, before finally returning to Earth on March 18.
Concerns were initially raised for their health, as, during time in microgravity, astronauts face a serious risk of muscle atrophy and bone loss which can then make walking on Earth more difficult.
However, the pair now say they have made an almost inconceivably rapid recovery thanks to NASA's scientific knowledge.
Space is one of the final areas of US-Russia cooperation amid an almost complete breakdown in relations between Moscow and Washington over the ongoing Ukraine conflict which began in February 2022.
The US, alongside other Western nations, have ceased other partnerships with Roscosmos as part of a number of sanctions placed upon Russia over the course of the war.
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