Ax-4 space mission with Pole onboard splashes down in Pacific Ocean
The Dragon Grace capsule with four astronauts, including a Pole, splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California at 11:30am CEST on Tuesday, after the crew spent 18 days aboard the International Space Station (ISS) conducting experiments, the flight's operator Axiom Space has reported.
After hurtling through the Earth's atmosphere, the capsule experienced an approximately eight-minute communication blackout. According to Jessie Anderson, live broadcast commentator for the Ax-4 space mission, the disruption was caused by plasma — a superheated, ionised gas that envelops the spacecraft after it enters the atmosphere.
The Dragon Grace capsule splashed down off the US Pacific coast near San Diego, California, where it was met by a rescue team standing by to secure and transfer it onto a specialised recovery ship. The astronauts disembarked shortly afterwards.
Apart from Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland, the mission comprised of Peggy Whitson from the US, Shubhanshu Shukla from India and Tibor Kapu of Hungary.
Uznanski-Wisniewski's return to Earth prompted an outpouring of comments from Polish politicians and high-profile officials on Tuesday.
President Andrzej Duda wrote on the X platform: "Mr. Slawosz, welcome back to Earth," adding that Poland watched him running experiments "with deep admiration and pride."
Duda described the space mission as "not only a breakthrough in the history of Polish science... an expression of courage and spirit that has shaped our national aspirations for generations: 'Reach where sight cannot reach. Break what reason cannot break.'"
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk commented on the landing in a video he posted on X, showing him watching the live broadcast of the Dragon capsule en route back to Earth. "He has landed!" Tusk wrote in a caption for the post, referring to Uznanski-Wisniewski.
"I hope he (Uznanski- Wisniewski - PAP) can swim," Tusk joked in the footage. "Welcome home... I think they made it. Thank God, I guess everything is fine."
Polish ministers also took to X to congratulate the astronaut on his return from the ISS. Science Minister Marcin Kulasek wrote that the Ax-4 mission was "not just a technological success but also a symbol of cooperation and courage."
"Poland has reasons for pride," wrote Krzysztof Paszyk, the development and technology minister, later the same day. "Our presence in space gains a new dimension," he added.
Uznanski-Wisniewski is due to arrive later at the European Astronaut Centre belonging to the European Space Agency (ESA) and headquartered in Cologne, Germany.
The spaceflight under the Axiom 4 mission was coordinated by the US space agency NASA, US space infrastructure developer Axiom Space, and US billionaire Elon Musk's SpaceX, which provided the Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft. Uznanski-Wisniewski's participation in the Ax-4 mission follows a 2023 agreement between Poland's Ministry of Development and Technology and the European Space Agency to carry out the IGNIS scientific mission to the ISS. (PAP) yb/mf
