ISS Command Changes Hands as Crew-12 Prepares to Return to Earth

The International Space Station (ISS) marked a change in leadership as the outgoing Crew-12 astronauts held a farewell ceremony before preparing to return to Earth. NASA astronaut Jessica Meir formally handed over command of the orbital laboratory to Roscosmos cosmonaut Pyotr Dubrov during the ceremony. The change comes as the Crew-12 mission approaches its conclusion following months of scientific research and operations aboard the station.

Crew-12 comprises Meir, NASA astronaut Jack Hathaway, European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev. The four astronauts have spent their mission conducting experiments and supporting the station’s day-to-day activities in the microgravity environment.

The handover took place shortly after the arrival of SpaceX’s Crew-13 mission, which brought four additional astronauts to the ISS. Their arrival temporarily increased the station’s population to 11 and ensured a smooth transition between the two crews.

Crew-12 is now preparing for its journey back to Earth. The departure is targeted for no earlier than October 7, with the spacecraft expected to splash down off the coast of California on October 8, subject to weather and recovery conditions. During their time aboard the ISS, the Crew-12 astronauts contributed to a wide range of scientific studies designed to examine how the human body and various biological processes respond to prolonged exposure to microgravity.

Their research included experiments involving stem-cell expansion, bone and muscle loss and the production of intravenous fluids in space. Such studies are intended to improve understanding of human health during long-duration space missions and could also have applications on Earth. The crew’s work forms part of the ISS’s broader scientific programme, which uses the unique microgravity environment to conduct experiments that cannot easily be replicated on Earth.