Polish astronaut reaches Europe following return to Earth
Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, Poland's first astronaut to visit the International Space Station (ISS), has landed in the German city of Cologne to undergo rehabilitation after his return from the mission.
On Wednesday, a specialised plane carrying Uznanski-Wisniewski, accompanied by his medical team and wife Aleksandra, landed in Cologne, home of the European Astronaut Centre.
Before heading to the German Aerospace Centre facility known as 'envihab' for a week-long recovery programme, Uznanski-Wisniewski told journalists that a "tremendous amount of work" was required to reap the full benefits of the mission, which he described as "probably the most difficult challenge... but also the most important and valuable experience of my life".
"This is an amazing moment in history... for us as well to seize this opportunity, to build our future," he added.
Asked about his health following the return to Earth, he said he was feeling well and had "no complaints."
Uznanski-Wisniewski also thanked all of the over 500 people involved in Poland's first scientific mission to space, IGNIS, as well as his wife, family and friends for their support, saying that without them the mission would not have been possible.
The Dragon Grace capsule with Uznanski-Wisniewski, Peggy Whitson from the US, Shubhanshu Shukla from India and Tibor Kapu of Hungary splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California around 11:30am CEST on Tuesday, following the crew's 18-day stay aboard the International Space Station conducting experiments and a total of 20 days in space.
According to the European Space Agency, the crew completed 230 orbits around the Earth, covering an estimated distance of 13 million kilometres.
Uznanski-Wisniewski is expected to travel to Poland around the middle of next week. (PAP) wpb/jch
