NASA's Crew-3 mission returned to Earth on Friday, splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida after months of research in orbit that ranged from space-grown chilies to working with robots.

The SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule parachuted safely into the sea, carrying Germany's European Space Agency astronaut Matthias Maurer, along with NASA astronauts Kayla Barron, Raja Chari and Tom Marshburn.

The astronauts were part of the third long-duration team launched by SpaceX to the International Space Station (ISS).

The crew undocked from the ISS on Thursday and journeyed for 23.5 hours to land on Earth. 

"On behalf of the entire SpaceX team, welcome home," a SpaceX official said to the crew after the capsule splashed down.

As the capsule bobbed in the calm waters, camera visuals from inside the crew compartment showed the astronauts strapped into their seats, wearing white-and-black spacesuits.

Splashdown-response teams were expected to reach the capsule in an hour to hoist it onto the deck of a recovery vessel and open the hatch to let the crew out for their first breath of fresh air in 6 months.

Crew-3 conducted hundreds of scientific experiments during the mission.

One of the experiments included growing chilies in space to add to the knowledge of cultivating crops on long-term missions.

They also observed how concrete hardened in space.

On Thursday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz wished Matthias Maurer "a good and safe journey back with a soft landing," thanking him on Twitter for "all the new discoveries in space that are so important for us here on Earth."

dvv/sms (AFP, Reuters)