End of a Year in Space; Three Russian and American Astronauts Return to Earth

Two Russian astronauts and one American astronaut returned to Earth on Wednesday, October 5, after a year-long mission in space. Frank Rubio, the American astronaut, set the record for the longest space flight by a U.S. astronaut during this mission at the International Space Station. According to the Associated Press, the three astronauts landed in a remote area near the city of Zhezkazgan in Kazakhstan aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft. This mission, initially planned for 180 days, turned into a 371-day mission, exceeding one year. Mr. Rubio spent more than two weeks longer in space than Mark Vande Hei, who previously held NASA's record for the longest space flight. Russia holds the world record for the longest stay in space with 437 days, set in the mid-1990s. Frank Rubio previously stated that the psychological aspect of spending a long time in space was harder than he expected. He is likely to hold this record for some time, as NASA currently has no further plans for year-long missions. This was the first spaceflight for Frank Rubio, a 47-year-old military doctor and helicopter pilot, and Dmitry Petelin, a 40-year-old engineer from Russia. However, for Sergey Prokopyev, a 48-year-old engineer and pilot, this was his second long-duration space mission at the International Space Station. The astronauts, from left to right, are Frank Rubio, Sergey Prokopyev, and Dmitry Petelin before their launch to the International Space Station on September 21, 2022. During this mission, from their launch from Kazakhstan to their return to Earth in September 2022, they orbited the Earth nearly 6,000 times and traveled approximately 253 million kilometers.