Russian Cosmonaut First to Spend 1,000 Days in Space

On June 5, Russian Cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko became the first person to spend 1,000 days in space. He surpassed the previous record held by fellow Russian Gennady Padalka, who spent 878 days, 11 hours, 29 minutes, and 48 seconds in space. Both achieved their records over five missions, but Kononenko’s missions were longer. He is expected to stay in space until September 23, pushing his total to 1,110 days, or about three years.

Kononenko’s Achievement

Kononenko expressed his pride and confidence in an interview with Russian state news agency TASS. He spoke about the significance of reaching this milestone and the sense of accomplishment it brought him.

Comparisons with Other Astronauts

Astronauts from other countries have not come close to Kononenko’s cumulative time in space. American astronaut Peggy Whitson holds the NASA record with 665 days. For the longest continuous stay, cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov holds the record with 437 days and 18 hours on the Mir space station in the mid-1990s. On the NASA side, Frank Rubio spent 371 days on the International Space Station due to a spacecraft problem, achieving this last September.

Effects of Long-Term Space Travel

Long-term space travel significantly impacts the human body. In microgravity, fluids like blood shift towards the head, muscle and bone density decrease, and astronauts experience anemia and muscular atrophy. They spend a lot of time exercising to mitigate these effects. Interestingly, astronauts also lose the calluses on their feet, leaving them smooth like a baby’s.

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