Bottlenose dolphins surrounded SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Freedom upon its splashdown off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, on Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (Image: NASA/Keegan Barber)
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The return of SpaceX’s Crew-9 astronauts from their extended mission aboard the International Space Station garnered interest from an unexpected group. A pod of dolphins greeted the Crew Dragon “Freedom” shortly after its splashdown on Tuesday, March 18.
SpaceX Recovery and Marine Visitors
Following the Crew Dragon Freedom’s landing off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, a SpaceX support team promptly secured the spacecraft. NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov were aboard.
The recovery operation involved securing the capsule and hoisting the Dragon, with the crew still inside, onto a recovery vessel using a crane.
Dolphin Encounter Adds Special Meaning
Dolphins are often observed near boats, but their presence around the newly landed spacecraft was noteworthy. The marine mammals displayed curiosity towards the unfamiliar object from space.
This encounter gains significance as astronaut Suni Williams, a crew member, harbors a deep connection to the ocean. Williams, initially slated to land in New Mexico with Wilmore aboard Boeing’s Starliner “Calypso,” named after Jacques Cousteau’s ship, faced a change in plans. Due to issues during their ISS mission, they were reassigned to a water landing in the Dragon.
Williams expressed her passion for the ocean in 2019, stating, “I love what the ocean means to this planet… There is so much to discover in the ocean and there is so much to discover in space.” Footage of the dolphin pod greeting the spacecraft landing and additional details about the crew’s return are available online.