Longest time in space station

As Polyakov’s record-breaking spaceflight neared its conclusion, the good doctor’s excitement at the prospect of seeing his family again was readily apparent.

Valeri polyakov biography of michael Since the early days of space exploration, several astronauts have spent significant time in space. Russian cosmonaut Valeri Vladimirovich Polyakov holds the record for completing the longest single stay in space. He spent 14 months; or more precisely days and 18 hours, living on Mir, the Russian space station. He is also a member of the Russian Chief Medical Commission. Valeri Polyakov was born on April 27, , in the Russia n industrial city of Tula.

“He’s a big guy, an extroverted guy, but can be sort of like a bull in a China shop,” remembered Thagard in a oral history of the space shuttle-Mir project. “He was apparently being real rambunctious, just listening to him on the radio as they were undocking and flying around before entering.” At one point, Viktorenko had to tell Polyakov to calm down.

Finally, on March 22, , Polyakov boarded the Soyuz TM spacecraft with Aleksandr Viktorenko and Yelena Kondakova, beginning his long-awaited trip back to Earth.

Touching down on terra firma after days, 17 hours, and 58 minutes in space, having circled the globe 6, times, Polyakov’s flight still remains our most relevant case study on how our frail bodies might endure a voyage to Mars.

Even after 63 weightless weeks, Polyakov seemed none the worse for wear, insisting on walking from the Soyuz capsule to a nearby chair under his own power. And his mental state, too, seemed good, despite anomalous dips in mood during the first and last months of his epic mission.

Polyakov’s legacy

Humanity’s endurance in space had advanced with impressive pace since Yuri Gagarin’s two-hour flight in April Within two decades, cosmonauts were routinely spending six months in orbit.

And by the end of the s, men survived off-planet for up to a full year. Yet only eight missions (including Polyakov’s) have spent longer than days in space, an achievement that we’ll need to more than double if we are to ever explore Mars in person.

Our physical wellbeing is one long pole.

Valeri polyakov biography of michael jackson He is the record holder for the longest single stay in space , staying aboard the Mir space station for more than 14 months days 18 hours during one trip. Selected as a cosmonaut in , Polyakov made his first flight into space aboard Soyuz TM-6 in He returned to Earth days later aboard TM Polyakov completed his second flight into space in —, spending days in space between launching on Soyuz TM and landing with TM , setting the record for the longest time continuously spent in space by an individual. Born Valeri Ivanovich Korshunov, Polyakov legally changed his name after being adopted by his stepfather in

When Scott Kelly returned to Earth in March after days on the International Space Station (ISS), he found himself stumbling as his legs learned to walk again. “All of my joints and all of my muscles,” he wrote in his memoir, Endurance, “are protesting the crushing pressure of gravity.” More recently, in February , Christina Koch completed days in space, the longest single mission by a woman.

And just last March, Mark Vande Hei and Pyotr Dubrov wrapped up an ISS stay that lasted just 10 days shy of a full year.

Right now, Mars is the only planet in our solar system entirely inhabited by robots. But when the first humans arrive, possibly within our lifetimes, we can hope that they will remember the accomplishments of intrepid explorers like Valeri Polyakov: a man who pushed boundaries to demonstrate that flesh and bones can survive the great unknown.

For when the first human does stand triumphantly on Mars’ surface, he or she will stand on the shoulders of a true titan.