Weather forecast: why the return of Thomas Pesquet should no longer be postponed – bfmtv

The French astronaut and his three crewmates are due to land on Tuesday off Florida. Many times postponed due to the risk of bad weather or even storms, this window of return finds this time some guarantees with the weather forecast.

This time it’s the right one. The crew of French astornaut Thomas Pesquet and his three colleagues Akihiko Hoshide, Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur – a quartet nicknamed the “CREW-2” by NASA – is this time about to leave the International Space Station to land on Tuesday in the Gulf of Mexico. When the capsule arrives, it will be 10:33 p.m. according to local time, or 4:33 a.m. in Paris.

CREW-2 had reached the ISS six months ago, on April 24, with some delays due to the weather. And their stay ends as it began: the date of their return has been pushed back many times since last week due to the weather conditions over Florida. But the new meeting this time has solid guarantees.

A two-step improvement

All weekend long, a low level shook the Florida sky with thunderstorms, preventing the capsule’s return from being considered. Thus, NASA officially deplored Sunday of “strong winds near the landing zone”. But this depression has migrated. This Monday, as shown by the American meteorological website AccuWeather, it now faces North Carolina. A situation that does not quite free the Florida sky on Monday – where the clouds are still numerous, with even a risk of showers in the morning, and the strong wind – but which is called to evolve towards a more complete improvement. .

Indeed, according to the analysis delivered by The Weather Channel on its site, the arrival of an anticyclone above the Midwest should calm the Florida climate over the following hours.

“Tuesday, there will be no wind at altitude under an often clear sky thanks to the return of the high pressures linked to the spreading of the high pressure positioned over the center of the United States towards Florida”, details the forecaster. .

And the great journey can therefore begin this Monday for Thomas Pesquet and his colleagues. Sunday, the European Space Agency had announced that the undocking of the capsule would take place at 8:05 p.m. according to Parisian clocks.

Robin verner BFMTV reporter