Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko has broken the world record to become the tallest person in space. On Sunday, June 4, he surpassed the then record holder, compatriot Gennady Padalka, who had accumulated a total of 878 days in orbit.
Kononenko aims to spend 1,000 days in space
According to Russian space company Roscosmos, Kononenko will be in space for approximately 1,000 days on June 5. By the end of September, the astronaut will have accumulated a total of 1,110 days in orbit.
In an interview with Russian news agency TASS at the International Space Station (ISS), where it is currently in orbit about 423 kilometers from Earth, Kononenko stressed that his goal is not to break records. “I travel to space to do what I love most, not to break records,” he said.
Kononenko's flight into space
The world record holder has always dreamed of going into space. He graduated from an engineering institute before undergoing astronaut training. Its first space flight took place in 2008, and its current journey to the International Space Station was launched last year aboard a Soyuz MS-24 spacecraft.
Cooperation between Russia and the United States in the field of space
Despite political tensions between Russia and the United States, the International Space Station remains one of the few international projects on which the two countries are still cooperating. In December, Roscosmos announced that its program of crossover flights with NASA to the International Space Station had been extended until 2025.
This announcement came against the backdrop of tense diplomatic relations between Russia and the United States in other areas, especially after the Russian invasion of Ukraine nearly two years ago. In response to this action, Washington sent weapons to Kiev and imposed successive rounds of sanctions on Moscow.
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