BY JUSTIN RAY

Follow the Expedition 9 crew's return to Earth after a half-year mission aboard the International Space Station. Reload this page for the latest.

Additional coverage for subscribers:
VIDEO: SATURDAY'S EXPEDITION 9 FAREWELL CEREMONY QT
VIDEO: THE THREE CREW MEMBERS BOARD SOYUZ CAPSULE QT
VIDEO: SOYUZ CAPSULE UNDOCKS FROM THE SPACE STATION QT
VIDEO: STATION EXTERNAL CAMERAS SHOWS DEPARTING SOYUZ QT
VIDEO: CREW CONFIRMS IGNITION OF DEORBIT BURN QT
VIDEO: THE RE-ENTRY PLASMA TRAIL SEEN FROM SPACE QT
VIDEO: SOYUZ TOUCHDOWN IN KAZAKHSTAN ANNOUNCED QT
VIDEO: RECOVERY FORCES OPEN THE SOYUZ HATCH QT
VIDEO: COMMANDER PADALKA PULLED FROM CAPSULE QT
VIDEO: FINCKE SPEAKS ABOUT SPACEFLIGHT AFTER CAPSULE EXIT QT

VIDEO: PREVIEW OF LANDING AND RECOVERY PROCESS QT
VIDEO: FRIDAY'S CHANGE-OF-COMMAND CEREMONY QT
VIDEO: RECAP OF EXPEDITION 9 MISSION QT
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0145 GMT (9:45 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Leaving behind the International Space Station that served as their orbiting home for the past half-year, the Expedition 9 crew safely journeyed back to Earth on Saturday night. Tucked inside the Russian Soyuz TMA-4 capsule, the crew landed in north-central Kazakhstan at 8:36 p.m. EDT (0036 GMT). Read our full story.

0124 GMT (9:24 p.m. EDT Sat.)

All three crew members look healthy as they remain in special reclining seats next to the capsule. They will be flown to a staging area within two hours, then onward to Star City outside Moscow.

0117 GMT (9:17 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Former space station resident from Expedition 5, Peggy Whitson, is talking to Fincke. See was aboard one of the lead helicopters tonight.

0115 GMT (9:15 p.m. EDT Sat.)

The live landing site video shows Padalka after exiting the capsule.

0112 GMT (9:12 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Fincke has exited the Soyuz, too. He is smiling widely.

0110 GMT (9:10 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Video being received in mission control shows Shargin seated outside of the capsule.

0049 GMT (8:49 p.m. EDT Sat.)

The first chopper has landed. The capsule is sitting on its side, which is not unusual or a problem. Soyuz is known to tip over depending on the wind strength tugging the parachute after touchdown.

0048 GMT (8:48 p.m. EDT Sat.)

A recovery team flying aboard a convoy of Russian military helicopters will land nearby Soyuz to begin assisting the crew out of the capsule.

Giant flood lights will be erected to illuminate the area since sunrise is more than an hour away. A medical tent will be set up near the capsule in which the crew can change out of its launch and entry suits. Russian technicians will open the module's hatch and begin to remove the crew, one by one. They will be seated in special reclining chairs near the capsule for initial medical tests and to provide an opportunity to begin readapting to Earth's gravity.

0047 GMT (8:47 p.m. EDT Sat.)

The recovery team has announced forces have spotted the capsule on the ground

0046 GMT (8:46 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Officials are in radio contact with the crew. However, the recovery forces have not reached the landing site.

0043 GMT (8:43 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Mission Control-Houston says the landing site is located at 50.47 degrees North and 67.12 degrees East. Soyuz has landed on course in the planned area.

0040 GMT (8:40 p.m. EDT Sat.)

The International Space Station's new residents -- the Expedition 10 crew -- was just told by mission controllers oustide Moscow of the Soyuz's successful homecoming.

0036 GMT (8:36 p.m. EDT Sat.)

TOUCHDOWN! The Russian Soyuz TMA-4 capsule has landed in north-central Kazakhstan three-and-a-half hours after undocking from the International Space Station.

Expedition 9 commander Gennady Padalka and flight engineer Michael Fincke are back on Earth after 188 days in orbit -- 186 of which were spent aboard the International Space Station. Visiting cosmonaut researcher Yuri Shargin has returned after spending 10 days aloft conducting science experiments. He launched with the replacement Expedition 10 crew and flew home with Expedition 9.

0035 GMT (8:35 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Soyuz passing through 400 meters.

0034 GMT (8:34 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Altitude is now less than 1,000 meters.

0033 GMT (8:33 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Soyuz is currently descending through 1,500 meters in altitude.

0032 GMT (8:32 p.m. EDT Sat.)

At an altitude of about 12 meters, cockpit displays will tell Padalka to prepare for the soft landing engine firing. Just one meter above the surface, and just seconds before touchdown, the six solid propellant engines are fired in a final braking maneuver, enabling the Soyuz to land to complete its mission, settling down at a velocity of about 1.5 meters per second.

0030 GMT (8:30 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Around five minutes from the scheduled landing of Expedition 9. Touchdown is expected to be on target.

0028 GMT (8:28 p.m. EDT Sat.)

The crew reports it is in good health, the capsule pressure is normal and the entry is progressing according to plan.

0026 GMT (8:26 p.m. EDT Sat.)

At an altitude of five kilometers, the module's heat shield is scheduled to be jettisoned. This is followed by the termination of the aerodynamic spin cycle and the dumping of any residual propellant from the Soyuz. Computers also will arm the module's seat shock absorbers in preparation for landing.

With the jettisoning of the capsule's heat shield, the Soyuz altimeter is exposed to the surface of the Earth. Using a reflector system, signals are bounced to the ground from the Soyuz and reflected back, providing the capsule's computers updated information on altitude and rate of descent.

0025 GMT (8:25 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Recovery forces report they have a visual sighting of the Soyuz under the parachute as the craft heads to the landing zone in north-central Kazakhstan.

0023 GMT (8:23 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Once the drogue chute is jettisoned, the main parachute to be deployed. It is connected to the Descent Module by two harnesses, covers an area of about 1,000 square meters and slows descent to 7.2 meters/second.

Initially, the Descent Module will hang underneath the main parachute at a 30-degree angle with respect to the horizon for aerodynamic stability, but the bottommost harness will be severed a few minutes before landing, allowing the Descent Module to hang vertically through touchdown.

0022 GMT (8:22 p.m. EDT Sat.)

The crew says chute deploy has occurred. Time to touchdown is about 14 minutes.

0020 GMT (8:20 p.m. EDT Sat.)

In the next few seconds, the onboard computers will start a commanded sequence for deployment of the capsule's parachutes at an altitude of about 10 kilometers. Two "pilot" parachutes are unfurled first, extracting a 24-square-meter drogue parachute. Within 16 seconds, the craft's fall will slow from 230 meters per second to about 80 m/s.

The parachute deployment creates a gentle spin for the Soyuz as it dangles underneath the drogue chute, assisting in the capsule's stability in the final minutes before touchdown.

0019 GMT (8:19 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Communications have been restored. "Everything is fine," the crew reports.

0018 GMT (8:18 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Recovery forces report seeing the plasma trail as the Soyuz streaks through the predawn sky.

0017 GMT (8:17 p.m. EDT Sat.)

The crew should be feeling the period of maximum G-loads during entry.

0016 GMT (8:16 p.m. EDT Sat.)

The crew is out of voice communications with Russian flight controllers. That is expected at this portion of the entry.

0014 GMT (8:14 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Cameras on the space station showed what appeared to be the red-hot plasma trail as the Soyuz enters the atmosphere below. The two craft are currently in darkness.

0013 GMT (8:13 p.m. EDT Sat.)

The entry guidance by the spacecraft's onboard software package is scheduled to start at this time.

0011 GMT (8:11 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Entry Interface. The Soyuz is now hitting the upper fringes of the atmosphere at an altitude of 400,000 feet. The Expedition 9 crew members are beginning to feel the first tugs of Earth's gravity after six months in space.

0009 GMT (8:09 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Separation of the Soyuz modules has been confirmed by mission control. The three segments of the Soyuz TMA-4 spacecraft have jettisoned apart, allowing the crew-carrying Descent Module to safely ferry the three men back to Earth. The no-longer-needed Orbital Module and Instrumentation/Propulsion Module are designed to burn up in the atmosphere.

0005 GMT (8:05 p.m. EDT Sat.)

Time to touchdown is 30 minutes. Soyuz continues to free-fall toward the atmosphere. The next event in the entry sequence will be separation of the spacecraft's three sections at 0008 GMT.

Just above the first traces of the Earth's atmosphere, computers will command the separation of the three modules of the Soyuz vehicle. With the crew strapped in to the Descent Module, the forward Orbital Module containing the docking mechanism and rendezvous antennas and the rear Instrumentation/Propulsion Module, which houses the engines and avionics, will pyrotechnically separate and burn up in the atmosphere.

The Descent Module's computers will orient the capsule with its ablative heat shield pointing forward to repel the buildup of heat as it plunges into the atmosphere. The crew will feel the first effects of gravity in six months at the point called Entry Interface, when the module is about 400,000 feet above the Earth, about three minutes after module separation.

2358 GMT (7:58 p.m. EDT)

Soyuz is crossing the equator over the Central Atlantic Ocean on a northeasterly heading that will take the capsule above Africa and then Asia for landing less than 40 minutes from now in Kazakhstan.

In about 10 minutes, computer commands will fire explosives to separate the three Soyuz modules for atmospheric entry. The crew is strapped inside the Descent Module.

2352 GMT (7:52 p.m. EDT)

The helicopters making up the recovery forces have left the staging site in the Kazakh city of Arkalyk located southwest of the landing zone.

2350 GMT (7:50 p.m. EDT)

The crew reports the burn lasted 4 minutes and 18 seconds, burning 273 kilograms of rocket fuel.

2347 GMT (7:47 p.m. EDT)

BURN COMPLETE! The Soyuz capsule carrying Expedition 9 commander Gennady Padalka, flight engineer Michael Fincke and visiting cosmonaut researcher Yuri Shargin has performed its braking maneuver, committing the craft for the return to Earth. Touchdown in north-central Kazakhstan is expected around 8:36 p.m. EDT (0036 GMT).

2345 GMT (7:45 p.m. EDT)

Three minutes into the burn. No problems have been noted so far in this deorbit burn.

2343 GMT (7:43 p.m. EDT)

"We are feeling the loads. Everything is nominal," Padalka reports to Russian flight controllers.

2342 GMT (7:42 p.m. EDT)

BURN IGNITION! The Russian Soyuz TMA-4 spacecraft has commenced the four-minute, 20-second deorbit burn. Engines on the capsule's aft-end are firing to brake from orbit for the plunge back to Earth.

2335 GMT (7:35 p.m. EDT)

With an hour remaining before landing time, the recovery forces are expected to begin taking off aboard a fleet of helicopters to surround the intended touchdown zone. Once the Soyuz has reached the ground, the teams will land near the capsule to help the crew exit their craft.

2312 GMT (7:12 p.m. EDT)

Clocks in mission control are counting down the final half-hour to the deorbit burn ignition. Weather conditions are breezy, cold and cloudy at the Kazakh landing site.

2303 GMT (7:03 p.m. EDT)

Mission controllers report the Soyuz computer has been powered on and onboard systems are being synchronized with the landing sequence. The deorbit burn is upcoming at 7:42 p.m. EDT. The 4-minute, 20-second braking maneuver will slow Soyuz by 258 miles per hour to send the craft toward atmospheric re-entry at 8:11 p.m.

2240 GMT (6:40 p.m. EDT)

Shortly after the undocking as the Soyuz drifted away from the space station, American astronauts Mike Fincke riding in the capsule and Leroy Chiao aboard the station had a brief ship-to-ship chat.

"It was smooth," Fincke said of the undocking.

"I saw some of the thruster firings as you guys backed away. It was great," Chiao replied.

"We couldn't even hear them. We could tell they were working but we didn't hear them. We only spent a kilogram of fuel, too. It was pretty small."

"Leroy, I left some toothpaste in the FGB and Gennady won't let me come back and get it," Fincke joked later.

"We'll send it back. We also found Gennady's name tag here," Chiao said.

After wishing the departing crew a soft landing, Chiao added: "It was great serving with you and I'd fly again with you any time."

"How about tomorrow? I'm free," Fincke replied.

2111 GMT (5:11 p.m. EDT)

The Soyuz spacecraft has fired its thrusters for about 8 seconds, providing a boost in velocity to increase the rate of separation between the capsule and station. Over the two-and-a-half hours, the two craft will drift apart before Soyuz ignites its engines to brake from orbit for re-entry.

2108 GMT (5:08 p.m. EDT)

UNDOCKING! With a gentle push by springs, the Soyuz TMA-4 spacecraft has undocked from the International Space Station's Zarya control module.

The Russian capsule is bringing the Expedition 9 crew -- commander Gennady Padalka and flight engineer Michael Fincke -- and visiting cosmonaut researcher Yuri Shargin back to Earth tonight. Expedition 9 spent six months living on the station, while Shargin visited for a week.

Landing is scheduled for 8:36 p.m. EDT (0036 GMT) in Kazakhstan.

2105 GMT (5:05 p.m. EDT)

The undocking command has been issued. The hooks and latches are opening to release the Soyuz capsule from the space station.

2104 GMT (5:04 p.m. EDT)

The station's steering jets are inhibited to prevent any movements during the undocking.

2100 GMT (5:00 p.m. EDT)

In about five minutes, the order will be sent to begin opening the hooks and latches holding the Soyuz to the space station's Pirs module. A few minutes later, the capsule will be pushed away from the station by springs. A brief firing of the Soyuz's thrusters will follow to increase the rate of separation between the two spacecraft.

2042 GMT (4:42 p.m. EDT)

The station's external lights have been turned on as the outpost flies in orbital darkness. Officials in Houston report everything continues in readiness for undocking.

2031 GMT (4:31 p.m. EDT)

Mission controllers report that all undocking preparations have progressed well in advance of the Soyuz capsule's departure from the International Space Station about 35 minutes from now.

1815 GMT (2:15 p.m. EDT)

Bidding farewell to the space station that served as their orbital home for the past six months, the Expedition 9 crew has boarded the Soyuz TMA-4 capsule in preparation for undocking and return to Earth later today.

Commander Gennady Padalka and flight engineer Michael Fincke, along with visiting cosmonaut researcher Yuri Shargin, just said their goodbyes to the station's new resident crew -- Expedition 10 commander Leroy Chiao and flight engineer Salizhan Sharipov.

"It was great seeing you, greating working with you the last week. It was incredible. Thanks for everything. Thanks for taking over for us," Padalka told Expedition 10.

"Guys, good luck to you," Sharipov replied. "We will wait for news from home that you are safe."

Chiao, Sharipov and Shargin launched to the station last week on Soyuz TMA-5. After the brief stay, Shargin is going home today while Expedition 10 is left behind for a half-year tour-of-duty on the outpost.

Preparations for today's homecoming began as Padalka, Fincke and Shargin enter the Soyuz craft currently docked to the station's Zarya module. It is the same ship Expedition 9 launched aboard in April.

Hatches between the capsule and station were closed at 2:13 p.m. EDT (1813 GMT).

Over the next couple of hours, they will work together to power up the Soyuz, active the craft's systems, remove docking clamps, depressurize the vestibule between the capsule and station and perform other work to ready for undocking.

Fincke will be seated in the Soyuz craft's left seat as flight engineer, Padalka will be in the center commander's seat and Shargin will occupy the right seat.

The command to begin opening hooks and latches firmly holding Soyuz to its Earth-facing docking port will be sent at 5:05 p.m. EDT (2105 GMT). Physical separation between the two craft occurs three minutes later as the capsule backs away at just one-tenth of a meter per second.

After moving about 20 meters from the station, the Soyuz engines will fire for eight seconds at 5:11 p.m. EDT (2111 GMT) to execute the so-called separation burn to propel the craft a substantial distance from the complex.

About two-and-a-half hours later, Soyuz will be 19 kilometers from the station. The capsule's engines will ignite for the four-minute, 20-second deorbit burn to brake from space. The onboard computers will initiate an engine firing at 7:42:37 p.m. EDT (2342:37 GMT) that slows the ship by 115.2 meters/sec, just enough to slip out of orbit for the return to Earth.

Just before reaching the top of the atmosphere, the Soyuz's three distinct modules will separate at 8:08:35 p.m. EDT (0008:35 GMT) under computer command. The crew will be located in the Descent Module, which is sandwiched between the forward Orbital Module containing the docking mechanism and the rear Instrumentation and Propulsion Module housing the engines and avionics.

The Descent Module orients itself to point the ablative heat shield in the direction of travel to protect the craft and crew from the intense plunge back to Earth. At 8:11:39 p.m. EDT (0011:39 GMT), the moment of Entry Interface occurs as the capsule hits the upper fringes of the atmosphere for the fiery re-entry.

During the fall homeward, the Orbital Module and Instrumentation and Propulsion Module will burn up in the atmosphere.

Six minutes after Entry Interface, the crew will experience the period of maximum G-loads during entry as they feel the tug of Earth's gravity for the first time since launch.

At 8:20:38 p.m. EDT (0020:38 GMT), the onboard computers will start a commanded sequence for deployment of the capsule's parachutes at an altitude of about 10 kilometers. Two "pilot" parachutes are unfurled first, extracting a 24-square-meter drogue parachute. Within 16 seconds, the craft's fall will slow from 230 meters per second to about 80 m/s.

The parachute deployment creates a gentle spin for the Soyuz as it dangles underneath the drogue chute, assisting in the capsule's stability in the final minutes before touchdown.

The drogue chute will be jettisoned, allowing the main parachute to be deployed. It is connected to the Descent Module by two harnesses, covers an area of about 1,000 square meters and slows descent to 7.2 meters/second.

Initially, the Descent Module will hang underneath the main parachute at a 30-degree angle with respect to the horizon for aerodynamic stability, but the bottommost harness will be severed a few minutes before landing, allowing the Descent Module to hang vertically through touchdown.

At an altitude of just over 5 kilometers, the heat shield will be cast free. That is followed by dumping of any residual propellant from the Soyuz.

Once the heat shield is gone, the Soyuz altimeter is exposed to the surface of the Earth. Using a reflector system, signals are bounced to the ground from the Soyuz and reflected back, providing the capsule's computers updated information on altitude and rate of descent.

At an altitude of about 12 meters, cockpit displays will tell Padalka to prepare for the soft landing engine firing. Just one meter above the surface, and just seconds before touchdown, the six solid propellant engines are fired in a final braking maneuver, enabling the Soyuz to land to complete its mission, settling down at a velocity of about 1.5 meters per second.

Touchdown is expected at 8:35:38 p.m. EDT (0035:38 GMT) on the steppes of north-central Kazakhstan, about 97 minutes before sunrise at the landing site. Expedition 9 concludes with a duration of 187 days, 21 hours and 16 minutes.

A group of Russian military helicopters carrying the recovery forces, including a U.S. flight surgeon and astronaut support personnel, should arrive soon after landing to help the crew exit the capsule.

Each crew member will be placed in special reclining chairs near the capsule for initial medical tests and begin readapting to Earth's gravity. They will be transferred into a portable medical tent erected near the touchdown point where the three men can remove their spacesuits.

Post-landing plans call for the crew to be flown from the site in helicopters within two hours of landing. They will be taken to the city of Kustanai for an initial welcoming ceremony. Then a Russian military transport plane will fly the crew to the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia, where their families will meet them.

The crew undergoes more than two weeks of medical tests and physical rehabilitation before Padalka and Fincke can return to the U.S. for additional debriefings and follow-up exams.

Additional coverage for subscribers:
VIDEO: OVERVIEW OF EXPEDITION 10 GOALS QT
VIDEO: BIOGRAPHIES OF CHIAO AND SHARIPOV QT
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