NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei this week set a brand new file for the longest spaceflight by an American.
Having arrived on the Worldwide Area Station (ISS) on April 9, 2021, Vande Hei on Tuesday surpassed the present 340-day NASA file set by Scott Kelly in 2016.
When Vande Hei returns to Earth on the finish of this month, his file will stand at 355 days.
The American astronaut arrived on the ISS with Russian cosmonaut Pyotr Dubrov and so the pair will share the file for the longest keep aboard the area station once they fly house collectively on the finish of this month.
In the beginning of their mission, Vande Hei and Dubrov had been anticipating an ordinary six-month mission, however modifications in crew rotation schedules final fall resulted of their keep being prolonged.
Present NASA chief Invoice Nelson congratulated Vande Hei on his new spaceflight file, tweeting: “At this time [Mark Vande Hei] makes historical past, surpassing [Scott Kelly’s] file of the only longest spaceflight by a NASA astronaut! Mark’s keep will assist us perceive the results of longer period missions in area. Mark, thanks to your service & congrats!”
In a video (beneath) posted on Tuesday, the American astronaut, who’s on his second area mission, stated that when he returns to Earth he plans to “get exterior as a lot as potential,” including, “I’ve had an indoor job 24/7 for nearly a yr so I’m wanting ahead to being exterior it doesn’t matter what form of climate.”
As for his most memorable experiences aboard the ISS, Vande Hei stated the gorgeous auroras are unforgettable (you possibly can see a few of them within the video).
Aboard the Worldwide Area Station, NASA Exp 66 Flight Engineer @Astro_Sabot answered social media questions on Mar. 10 and mirrored on his record-breaking spaceflight. pic.twitter.com/nTBIKMAUkr
— Worldwide Area Station (@Space_Station) March 16, 2022
Apart from engaged on a bunch of experiments throughout his prolonged keep, Vande Hei additionally discovered time to go to the station’s Cupola module to seize beautiful images of Earth because the ISS orbited at an altitude of about 250 miles.
Having stayed longer in area than most astronauts (although not so long as the record-setting Russian cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov, who stayed aboard the Mir area station for 437 days 18 hours within the mid-90s), researchers will likely be eager to learn how nicely Vande Hei’s physique tailored to spending an prolonged interval in microgravity circumstances, with the findings serving to NASA to raised design the upcoming crewed missions to the moon and Mars.
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