MOSCOW, September 27 The Soyuz MS-23 spacecraft with Russian cosmonauts Sergei Prokopyev and Dmitry Petelin returning to Earth and the American Francisco Rubio undocked from the ISS, as follows from the broadcast on the Roscosmos website.
In a few hours, the spacecraft’s propulsion system should turn on and issue a braking impulse to deorbit. After this, Soyuz MS-23 will be divided into compartments, and its descent module with astronauts will enter the atmosphere. Landing in the Kazakh steppe is expected at 14.17 Moscow time. This was Prokopyev’s second flight; Petelin and Rubio were in orbit for the first time. By the time of landing, the crew will have spent 371 days in space. This is the longest flight under the ISS program.
The crew of the 70th long-term expedition remains at the station: Russians Oleg Kononenko, Nikolai Chub and Konstantin Borisov, Americans Jasmine Moghbeli and Loral O'Hara, Dane Andreas Mogensen and Japanese Satoshi Furukawa.< br />
Prokopyev, Petelin and Rubio were delivered to the ISS by the Russian Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft on September 21, 2022. On December 15, after a micrometeorite hit, according to official data, the Soyuz cooling system depressurized. The crew was forced to stay on the ISS for another six months: experts decided that returning astronauts on such a ship was dangerous. The Soyuz MS-23 was sent to replace the damaged ship.