This NASA Astronaut Is Preparing For An 8-Month Stay Aboard ISS On First Space Mission

Space Mission: NASA and Roscosmos will be sending three astronauts on Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft in March 2025 as part of Expedition 72/73 mission to International Space Centre.

March 2025 Space Mission: NASA astronaut Jonny Kim is all set for his first space mission. As member of the Expedition 72/73 crew, Kim will launch on the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft that will leave for the International Space Station in March 2025. Astronaut Kim will serve as a flight engineer on the Expedition 72/73 crew, NASA said Wednesday. 

Kim will be engaged in "scientific investigations and technology demonstrations to help prepare the crew for future space missions and provide benefits to people on Earth", the space agency said. Born to Korean-American immigrants, Kim has earlier served as the Increment Lead of ISS for Expedition 65 in 2021, but this will be his first mission to the space station. 

Cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky from Roscosmos will be his fellow travellers on the Soyuz MS-27, and the three will spend nearly eight months aboard the orbiting laboratory.

"Jonathan Kim's flight will be performed under an agreement between Roscosmos and NASA in line with the ISS program of cross-flights of Russian cosmonauts on American Crew Dragon spacecraft and American astronauts on Russian Soyuz MS spacecraft," the Russian space agency said in a statement earlier this month.

Sergey Ryzhikov has been to space earlier, as part of Expedition 64 in 2020-2021. He was the commander of the crew, and also undertook a spacewalk during the mission. It could not be ascertained if cosmonaut Alexey Zubritsky has been on a space mission in the past.   

ALSO READ ON ABP LIVE | Sunita Williams To Return To Earth On SpaceX Dragon Capsule As NASA Opts For 'Uncrewed' Starliner Flight

How Long Can An Astronaut Stay In Space?

The duration of time astronauts can spend in space became a matter of discussion after an initial eight-day mission of NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, as part of the first test flight of Boeing Starliner capsule, got extended for an indefinite period due to faults detected in the spacecraft. 

With safety concerns raised for the two astronauts feared to be stranded in space, NASA has tried to allay fears and repeatedly conveyed that Williams and Wilmore are not "stuck" in space but "integrated" with the existing Expedition 71 crew comprising Matthew Dominick, Mike Barratt, Jeanette Epps, and Tracy C. Dyson from NASA, and Oleg Kononenko, Nikolai Chub, and Alexander Grebenkin from Roscosmos.

On August 24, NASA announced that the faulty spacecraft will be returned uncrewed, and the two astronauts will be brought back in February 2025 onboard its SpaceX Crew-9 mission. 

This effectively means the Soyuz MS-27 carrying Kim, Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky will be docking with the ISS after Williams and Wilmore return.   

According to NASA, astronauts assigned to ISS missions usually stay aboard the orbiting lab for about six months, but several of them have remained in space for longer durations.