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Soyuz spacecraft lands off-target Soyuz spacecraft lands off-target
(30 minutes later)
A Russian Soyuz spacecraft has returned to Earth, but came down more than 400km (250 miles) away from its planned touchdown point, say Russian officials.A Russian Soyuz spacecraft has returned to Earth, but came down more than 400km (250 miles) away from its planned touchdown point, say Russian officials.
The capsule also came down in the Kazakh steppe later than planned, the Russian Mission Control Centre told the news agency Itar-Tass. The crew are safe, but were subjected to severe G-forces during re-entry, said a spokesman for Mission Control according to AP news agency.
He said they were being examined on site by medical staff.
On board are Yi So-yeon, South Korea's first astronaut, Yuri Malenchenko from Russia and American Peggy Whitson.On board are Yi So-yeon, South Korea's first astronaut, Yuri Malenchenko from Russia and American Peggy Whitson.
Russian officials said contact had been made and the crew were safe. The Russian TMA-11 craft touched down some 420km away from its planned landing point in the Kazakh steppe, and some 20 minutes later than scheduled.
Ms Yi spent 11 days conducting tests at the International Space Station. The three crew are said to be safe, say space officials.
Ms Whitson now holds the record for the cumulative length of time spent in space by an American at 377 days, the US space agency Nasa has said. However, they are undergoing medical examinations after being subjected to G-forces up to 10 times those present on Earth, said spokesman Valery Lyndin.
Before the Soyuz TMA-11 undocked, TV pictures showed the returning crew hugging those they were leaving behind. Officials said the craft followed a so-called "ballistic re-entry" - a plunge with an uncontrollable, steep trajectory.
They include flight engineer Oleg Kononenko, 43, and Sergei Volkov, 34, the son of a famous Soviet cosmonaut, with whom Ms Yi made the flight to the ISS some 10 days ago. Ms Yi had spent 11 days conducting tests at the International Space Station.
Ms Yi, who was chosen from about 36,000 applicants for the mission, has said she hoped it would help warm ties on the divided Korean peninsula. Ms Whitson now holds the record for the cumulative length of time spent in space by an American at 377 days, the US space agency Nasa said earlier.