A Russian spaceship carrying three astronauts landed safely in Kazakhstan after a nearly six-month mission at the International Space Station (ISS), Russian mission control said Wednesday.

The spacecraft, the Soyuz TMA-17, made a "soft landing" on the barren steppes of Kazakhstan on Wednesday morning, officials said.

The three crew members, Oleg Kotov of Russia, Timothy Creamer of the United States and Soichi Noguchi of Japan, began their space journey last December.

Reports said they were in good condition and high spirits despite a demanding three-and-a-half-hour journey from the ISS.

Meanwhile, astronauts Mikhail Kornienko and Alexander Skvortsov of Russia, and Tracy Caldwell Dyson of the U.S., who docked with the ISS in April, will continue their 167-day work at the space station. They are expected to be joined by three new crew members later in mid-June.

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