Three Space Station Astronauts Safely Return to Earth

A three-person crew from the International Space Station landed safely in Kazakhstan on Thursday after a longer-than-expected orbital stay. Their Soyuz capsule landed on schedule today. Russian helicopters buzzing around the landing area quickly delivered search and rescue crews to help the astronauts get out of the capsule and quickly check their condition. The mission's extension was caused by the failed launch of a Russian cargo ship in April. Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti's record-setting run in space ended when the Italian astronaut returned to Earth. She set a single-mission duration record of 199 days for all European Space Agency astronauts. She's also the woman who has spent the longest time in space on a single mission, Also on board the Soyuz are American Terry Virts and Russian Anton Shkaplerov, whose return to Earth marks the end of Expedition 43.