NASA astronaut Frank Rubio breaks US record for longest spaceflight

NASA astronaut Frank Rubio now holds the record for the longest US spaceflight

The Associated Press
Monday 18 September 2023 09:56 EDT
NASA astronaut Frank Rubio due to break the single spaceflight record

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NASA astronaut Frank Rubio now holds the record for the longest US spaceflight.

Rubio surpassed the US space endurance record of 355 days on Monday at the International Space Station. He arrived at the outpost last September with two Russians for a routine six months. But their stay was doubled after their Soyuz capsule developed a coolant leak while parked at the space station.

The trio will return to Earth on Sept. 27 in a replacement capsule that was sent up empty for the ride home. By then, Rubio will have spent 371 days in space, more than two weeks longer than Mark Vande Hei, the previous US record holder for a single spaceflight, Russia holds the world record of 437 days, set in the mid-1990s.

“Your dedication is truly out of this world, Frank!” NASA chief Bill Nelson said via X, formerly known as Twitter.

A replacement crew of two Russians and an American is set to launch to the station from Kazakhstan on Friday.

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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