KOROLYOV /Moscow Region/, December 9. /TASS/. The engines of the Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft, carrying the crew of the 73rd long-term expedition to the International Space Station - Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky, and NASA astronaut Jonathan Kim - have been activated for deceleration, a TASS correspondent reported from the Mission Control Center.
Soon, the descent module will separate from the living quarters and instrument compartment, which will burn up in the dense layers of the atmosphere along with any discarded cargo.
Aeroballistic deceleration of the descent module will occur in the dense layers of the atmosphere, creating a plasma cloud with temperatures around 2,000 degrees Celsius. This will cause the heat shield to turn black after landing and temporarily disrupt communication with the crew.
Further deceleration will be achieved using parachutes, and the soft-landing engines on the Soyuz MS-27 will fire when the module is less than a meter above the ground. The descent module is expected to land in Kazakhstan at 5:04 a.m. GMT.