Expedition 16 Commander Peggy Whitson on the International Space Station is expected to return to Earth on Saturday aboard the Soyuz spacecraft, together with two other crewmates. Whitson already handed over command of the International Space Station to Expedition 17 Commander Sergei Volkov on Thursday, in a ceremony held inside the U.S. Harmony Node.

“I’m officially handing over the International Space Station over to Sergei Volkov, and I’m very happy to do so,” Whitson said during the televised ceremony. “We’ve had a really great privilege and honor to be here on the station.”

NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson was the first female in command of the International Space Station and the first American to spend as much as 374 days in space as of Wednesday. At the same time, she holds the women’s world record for spacewalking, totaling 39 hours and 46 minutes during 6 spacewalks.

The Russian spacecraft Soyuz will land in Kazahstan at around 4:30 a.m. ET on Saturday. Both crews on the space station prepare for Soyuz’s undocking. Flight Engineer Yuri Malenchenko and So-yeon Yi (the first South Korean to participate in a space mission) will accompany Whitson back to Earth.

Expedition 16 prepares to end a six-month journey on the International Space Station. Expedition 17, which started off on April 8, 2008, is also ahead of a six-month staying on the International Space Station.

“Thank you very much for such a pretty station, a beautiful station,” said Sergei Volkov, the new commander of the space station, during the Thursday ceremony. “We wish for you a safe trip back home and good luck.”