LOS ANGELES, June 16 (Xinhua) -- The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft departed the International Space Station (ISS) on Tuesday and began its journey back to Earth, carrying thousands of pounds of scientific samples and equipment.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the company's Dragon spacecraft on top is seen on the launch pad at Space Launch Complex 40 as preparations continue for the Crew-12 mission on February 12, 2026, at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. (File photo: AFP)

The spacecraft undocked from the ISS at 12:25 p.m. Eastern Time and is scheduled to splash down off the coast of the U.S. state of California on Wednesday morning.

The mission marks SpaceX's 34th commercial resupply mission for NASA.

According to NASA, Dragon is returning with one of the largest collections of research cargo ever brought back from the orbiting laboratory. The payload includes bioprinted organ and cartilage tissue samples, data that could help improve cryogenic fuel storage for future space missions, and DNA-inspired materials being studied for the development of new cancer treatments.