They are the first all-civilian team to achieve this feat. The Inspiration4 crew left on a SpaceX capsule from Florida on Wednesday, and landed off the state's coast after 19:00 local time on Saturday.

Four parachutes slowed the capsule's descent before it landed in the water, where SpaceX boats sped to retrieve it. The Inspiration4 team was led by billionaire Jared Isaacman, chief executive of the e-commerce firm Shift4 Payments Inc, who acted as mission "commander".