A day before leaving the space station and bringing to an end Expedition 52, Yurchikhin handed over command to Randy Bresnik and in doing so attempted to begin a new tradition — the passing of the key to the International Space Station.

After 136 days in orbit for NASA astronaut Jack "2fish" Fischer and 289 days for NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, they are safely back in Houston! They arrived at Ellington Airport a little more than a day after they landed from space in Kazakhstan. After greeting family, friends, and colleagues, they will begin participating in research and rehabilitation.

Readout of President Donald J. Trump's Call with NASA Astronauts Peggy Whitson and Jack Fischer

President Donald J. Trump spoke yesterday with NASA astronauts Peggy Whitson and Jack Fischer who just returned to Earth after lengthy stays aboard the International Space Station.

"I want to congratulate Peggy and Jack for their incredible accomplishments. They make us very proud," said President Trump. "Exploration has always been at the core of who we are as Americans, and their brave contributions to human space flight have continued that great tradition."

In April, the President made a call to the International Space Station congratulating Commander Whitson for breaking the record for cumulative time spent in space by a U.S. astronaut. She is the only female astronaut to command the International Space Station twice, and holds the women's record for the longest time in orbit during a single spaceflight.

Yesterday, the President specifically recognized Commander Whitson for spending 665 total days in space, a new record for American astronauts.

"Peggy is an inspiration to us all," said President Trump," especially to young women interested in or currently pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and math."

Since the beginning of his administration, President Trump has taken steps to focus NASA on its core mission of space exploration by signing the NASA Transition Authorization Act, the INSPIRE Women Act, and an Executive Order on Reviving the National Space Council. The President is supportive of the budding commercial space flight industry, and encourages competition and innovation in that area.