This Italian Astronaut Set a New Women's Record for Longest Single Spaceflight

A multinational trio of astronauts has just arrived back on Earth after a record-breaking stint on the International Space Station (ISS). The Russian cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov, Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, and American commander Terry Virts landed safely near Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan at 9:44 AM Eastern Time, after departing the station in the Soyuz space capsule.

Their return marks the successful end of ISS Expedition 43, an orbital adventure that included spacewalks, countless experiments, microgravity cooking tutorials, and a new record for the longest single space flight ever completed by a female astronaut.

The three astronauts first arrived on the ISS on November 24, 2014, and were originally intended to arrive Earthside several weeks ago, but were delayed after a cargo resupply capsule ended up spinning out of control on April 28.

Though losing a spacecraft is never good news, there was a silver lining to the accident. Not only did it enable Cristoforetti to spend another few weeks entertaining us all with her charming videos and gorgeous photos, it also resulted in her breaking Sunita Williams's record of 195 days in space, which was the longest time any female astronaut had previously clocked in a single mission. Cristoforetti ended up logging an impressive 199 days and 16 hours thanks to the delay.

You have to wonder if Cristoforetti hoped she could stay for just eight more hours to clock out at an even 200 days, but regardless, she looks happy to be acclimating back to planetary life after her long journey. The same goes for Virts, who now has a combined total of 212 space days under his belt, and Shkaplerov, who has now spent an impressive 364 days in orbit, over the course of two stints on the ISS.

In total, the Expedition 43 trio traveled about 84.2 million miles during their 199-day mission, and orbited the Earth 3,184 times.

The mission will be succeeded by Expedition 44, which is commanded by cosmonaut Gennady Padalka, and includes astronaut Scott Kelly and cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko, all of whom arrived at the ISS on March 27. Kelly and Kornienko are participating in the first yearlong stay aboard the ISS, dubbed the One Year Mission.

In July, the Expedition 44 crew will welcome three new members—Oleg Kononenko from Roscosmos, Kjell Lindgren from NASA, and Kimiya Yui from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). Until then, they will have a lot more room to maneuver in the ISS, but it sounds like they will miss their Expedition 43 crewmates a lot too.

"Fair winds and following seas, guys, it was a real pleasure spending time up here with you," Kelly told the crew over the radio, as the Soyuz left the station. "Good luck on your landing."

"Thanks, Scott," Virts replied. "Miss you guys already."

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