In pictures: Soyuz landing

1 of 8 Back to Earth...The three-man space crew land safely after travelling back from the International Space Station (ISS).

2 of 8 Their Soyuz spacecraft touches down on target in the steppes of Kazakhstan.

3 of 8 The Russian, Dutch and American astronauts are bundled into heavy sleeping bags and given hot tea upon arrival.

4 of 8 Russian cosmonaut Alexander Kaleri spoke of an "amazingly soft" landing.

5 of 8 Mr Kaleri and British-born American Michael Foale had spent six months on the ISS.

6 of 8 Andre Kuipers - only the second Dutch person to fly into space - was returning from an 11-day stint.

7 of 8 He and fellow astronauts were welcomed with some Dutch cheese, as well as traditional Kazakh robes and hats.

8 of 8 They took a more conventional mode of air travel to the cosmonaut training centre, Star City, near Moscow.