Astronaut Onishi returns to Earth

Japanese astronaut Takuya Onishi and 2 crew members have returned to Earth after completing their mission at the International Space Station. Onishi is a former pilot and the 11th Japanese astronaut. He has been on the International Space Station since July. Onishi boarded the Russian Soyuz spacecraft at around 21:00 UTC on Saturday along with the 2 other crew members, an American and a Russian. The spacecraft left the ISS at 0:35 UTC on Sunday. It entered the atmosphere about 3 hours later after 2 of its 3 sections separated at an altitude of about 140 kilometers. It landed on a plain in Kazakhstan in central Asia at around 4:00 UTC on Sunday. Footage from the landing site shows Onishi being carried out of the spacecraft, while smiling and waving to people around him. Japanese space officials say he is in good health.