Science-Laden SpaceX Dragon Splashes Down In Pacific

Dragon capsule after being recovered from the ocean. (Credit: SpaceX)

SpaceXs Dragon capsule successfully splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on Tuesday evening at 7:44pm. The spacecraft was recovered by ship and is on its way to Long Beach, California to deliver some cargo to NASA before arriving at its final destination in McGregor, Texas.

Among the cargo on board the ship are examples of items that were 3D printed on board NASAs first zero-G printer, which was developed by startup Made In Space. (Whose founders, incidentally, were among the FORBES 30 Under 30 in Manufacturing this year.)

The scientific cargo also included samples from plants that were grown on board the International Space Station in an effort to determine how microgravity impacts plant growth. Also coming back to Earth are samples of proteins that were crystallized in microgravity to learn more about them, a feat thats difficult to accomplish here on Earth.

SpaceXs next launch will deliver the Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft to a point about 930,000 miles away from Earth. That launch is currently scheduled for 6:03pm ET on Wednesday, February 11.

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Science-Laden SpaceX Dragon Splashes Down In Pacific