WASHINGTON, D.C. (FNN) — NASA astronaut Jonny Kim returned to Earth early Tuesday alongside Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky, concluding an eight-month science mission aboard the International Space Station focused on advancing life on Earth and preparing for future deep space exploration.

The trio landed safely under parachute at 12:03 a.m. EST (10:03 a.m. local time) southeast of Dzhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, aboard the Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft. Their departure from the station occurred at 8:41 p.m. EST on Dec. 8.

Record-Breaking Mission and First-Time Flyers

Across 245 days in orbit, the crew circled Earth 3,920 times and traveled nearly 104 million miles. Kim and Zubritsky completed their first spaceflights, while Ryzhikov—on his third mission—now holds 603 cumulative days in space.

The crew launched to the ISS on April 8 as part of a mission that contributed to NASA’s long-running efforts to advance scientific discovery and human spaceflight capabilities.

Scientific Research to Benefit Earth and Future Missions

While aboard the ISS, Kim supported numerous experiments and technology demonstrations. His work included studying the behavior of bioprinted tissues with blood vessels in microgravity—research that could accelerate space-based tissue production and improve medical treatments on Earth.

Kim also tested multi-robot remote command capabilities for the Surface Avatar investigation, a study that could inform the development of robotic assistants for future lunar and Martian missions. In addition, he contributed to research on in-space manufacturing of DNA-mimicking nanomaterials, which may enhance drug delivery systems and support emerging fields in regenerative medicine.

Return to Houston and the Future of Exploration

After routine medical checks in Kazakhstan, the crew will travel to the recovery staging area in Karaganda. Kim will then return to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

For more than 25 years, astronauts have lived and worked continuously aboard the International Space Station, enabling scientific breakthroughs not achievable on Earth. As commercial partners expand human spaceflight services and develop new low Earth orbit destinations, NASA is directing its focus toward deep space exploration through the Artemis program and preparing for eventual human missions to Mars.

ORLANDO, Fla. (FNN NEWS) – Social media wasn’t supposed to be like this. Endless noise, manipulated algorithms, harassment buried under engagement metrics, and creators fighting just to be seen: it’s a landscape that rewards chaos over connection. Byio, a new platform built by Black women, is trying something radically different: slowing things down, putting people first, and making digital space intentional again.

Byio stands for “By Invite Only,” and it means that literally. You can’t just sign up. You join through a personal invite and each user only gets two. This isn’t exclusivity for the sake of hype. It’s a form of cultural quality control. Growth isn’t measured in downloads; it’s measured in alignment. The people behind Byio are building a digital space where values aren’t an afterthought.

Led by founder and CEO R.M. Easterly, Byio was created out of frustration not just with broken moderation systems or paywalled reach, but with the deeper issue of who gets to shape online culture. Black creators and communities have been disproportionately impacted by platform policies that erase or ignore them. Byio doesn’t just give them a voice — it gives them the blueprint.

What sets Byio apart isn’t a flashy feature list, though it has those: livestreaming, built-in monetization, creator gifting, e-commerce tools all built into the platform from day one

. But the real innovation is philosophical. Moderation isn’t only reactive. AI prompts are used to encourage users to pause before posting content that might escalate conflict. It’s not censorship — it’s digital self-awareness baked into the UX.

The platform launched in a staggered rollout known as the “TG10s” — the first 10,000 users who will help shape the culture. Discord is the current front porch of that community, with conversations already driving feedback and ideas. Some early supporters are even buying physical Byio stickers — not as access passes, but as expressions of belief in the mission.

And people are watching closely. Critics and newcomers alike are asking the right questions: Can a platform grow and still stay grounded? Will the AI moderation tools respect nuance and cultural context? Will creator monetization be fair and accessible? So far, the answers aren’t in grand promises but in the quiet, deliberate pace of how Byio is rolling out.

Compared to giants like Instagram, TikTok, or X, where the incentive structure leans heavily toward viral content and ad revenue, Byio feels like a platform pulling in the opposite direction. Even newer alternatives like Mastodon or Bluesky may tout decentralization, but they haven’t solved moderation or cultural bias at scale. Byio’s approach — tight-knit, human-led, AI-supported, culturally conscious — isn’t just unusual. It’s practically rebellious.

Byio isn’t for everyone. It’s not trying to be. But for creators, communities, and everyday users who’ve felt erased, misrepresented, or simply exhausted by the internet as it stands. This platform may be the start of something that doesn’t just look different, but feels different.

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Kareen Kennedy is the Assistant Editor for Florida National News
kareen.kennedy@floridanationalnews.com

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. (FNN) – Florida National News has learned that NASA’s latest mission, TRACERS (Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites), has officially launched and will soon begin studying Earth’s magnetic field to better understand how it protects the planet from the harmful effects of space weather.

NASA Launches TRACERS to Study Earth’s Magnetic Shield

The TRACERS mission lifted off Wednesday at 11:13 a.m. PDT (2:13 p.m. EDT) aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The twin spacecraft will fly closely together—just 10 seconds apart—making over 3,000 measurements in a single year to provide a detailed picture of magnetic reconnection, a process that impacts space weather and Earth’s atmosphere.

“NASA is proud to launch TRACERS to demonstrate and expand American preeminence in space science research and technology,” said acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy. “This mission will yield breakthroughs that will advance our pursuit of the Moon, and subsequently, Mars.”

Mission controllers successfully made contact with the second spacecraft three hours after separation, and a four-week commissioning period will now begin before science operations commence.

TRACERS’ Role in Understanding Magnetic Reconnection

TRACERS will orbit the polar cusp, an open region in Earth’s magnetic field near the North Pole. This area is critical for studying how solar wind—a stream of charged particles from the Sun—interacts with Earth’s magnetic field. The mission will investigate magnetic reconnection, where magnetic field lines from the Sun and Earth snap and realign, releasing intense bursts of energy.

These interactions cause charged particles to cascade into Earth’s atmosphere, affecting satellites, communication systems, and power grids. TRACERS will give scientists unprecedented insight into how fast and intensely these processes occur.

“The successful launch of TRACERS is a tribute to many years of work by an excellent team,” said David Miles, TRACERS principal investigator at the University of Iowa. “We’re excited to explore the dynamic processes driving space weather.”

Small Satellites Hitch a Ride with TRACERS

Alongside TRACERS, NASA deployed three additional small satellite missions:

• Athena EPIC: A demonstration satellite showing how modular SmallSat designs can lower costs and speed up deployment while measuring Earth’s outgoing longwave radiation.

• PExT: A polylingual experimental terminal using software-defined radios to connect across commercial and government networks—similar to cell phone roaming, but in space.

• REAL: A CubeSat investigating how high-energy electrons are scattered from the Van Allen radiation belts into Earth’s atmosphere, helping to protect astronauts and spacecraft.

Each mission contributes valuable data and technology demonstrations for future space operations.