NASA astronaut Chris Williams touched down in Kazakhstan on Sunday morning, ending an eight-month mission aboard the International Space Station. His Soyuz MS-28 spacecraft made a parachute-assisted landing at 5:27 a.m. CDT, southeast of Dzhezkazgan. Williams was joined by Russian cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev.
According to NASA, the crew spent 241 days in space, orbited Earth 3,856 times, and traveled more than 102 million miles. They had launched from Earth on Nov. 27, 2025. The mission marked the first spaceflight for both Williams and Mikaev, while it was the second for Kud-Sverchkov.
During their time aboard the orbiting laboratory, the crew carried out a wide range of scientific investigations and technology demonstrations. Williams helped advance research for new cancer treatments and contributed to improved in-space manufacturing of materials used in high-performance computers and electronics.
He also completed two spacewalks during the mission. The first was to prepare the space station for power system upgrades. The second was to replace a faulty joint on the Canadarm2 robotic arm, a mechanical arm used to move equipment and assist astronauts during spacewalks.
After landing, the crew underwent post-landing medical checks before flying by helicopter to Karaganda, Kazakhstan, where recovery teams are based. Williams then boarded a NASA aircraft headed for the agency's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.
NASA noted that people have lived and worked continuously aboard the International Space Station for more than 25 years. Research conducted on the station is intended to improve life on Earth and to support future human missions to the Moon as part of the Artemis program, and eventually to Mars.
