In a news briefing following the landing, Nasa spokesperson Steve Stich said: "From a human perspective, all of us feel happy about the successful landing, but then there's a piece of us - all of us - that wish it would have been the way we had planned it.

Stranded Nasa astronauts to finally return to Earth after nine months in space - Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have been at the International Space Station for nine months

Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have to wait until their replacements arrive at the International Space Station next week before they can check out later this month