A Soyuz capsule has returned to Earth, carrying the Sochi 2014 Olympic torch after it was taken on its first spacewalk as part of the Russian lead-up to the Winter Games.

The torch landed in central Kazakhstan after leaving the International Space Station.

Three astronauts delivered it back after a three-and-a-half hour descent.

The torch was taken up to the ISS on Thursday and then waved outside the space station.

Russian cosmonauts Oleg Kotov and Sergei Ryazansky posed for photographs as they held the torch 420km (260 miles) above Earth.
Elaborate preparations

The Olympic torch has been carried into space twice before - in 1996 and 2000 - but it had never previously left a spaceship.

The torch was unlit inside the ISS because of safety concerns and outside due to the lack of oxygen.

A different crew - Russia's Fyodor Yurchikhin, Nasa US astronaut Karen Nyberg and Italian Luca Parmitano - bought it back to Earth, landing on the Kazakh steppes shortly before 08:50 (02:50 GMT) on Monday.

The capsule descended to the ground under a parachute.

Mr Yurchikhin, the mission commander, was carried from the capsule to a reclining chair and covered with blanket against the cold.

The torch was removed from a protective bag and given to Mr Yurchikhin, who waved it and smiled for the cameras.

The capsule completed a perfect descent and touched down exactly on time, according to a Nasa TV commentator.

Source: bbc.co.uk/