On September 11, 2024, Earth reached a brand new milestone in area journey, with a document 19 individuals at present orbiting our planet. This new document was set when a Russian Soyuz rocket launched three new astronauts in direction of the Worldwide House Station (ISS). The earlier document of 17 was set final yr. This important enhance in human presence in area highlights the rising exercise and collaboration within the realm of area exploration.
Soyuz Launches New Crew
The Soyuz mission took off on September 11, 2024, carrying NASA astronaut Don Pettit and Russian cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner. Their arrival on the ISS is predicted to happen round 3:30 p.m. EDT (1930 GMT) on the identical day.
This trio joins the prevailing 9 astronauts aboard the ISS, together with NASA’s Michael Barratt, Tracy Caldwell-Dyson, Matthew Dominick, Jeanette Epps, Barry Wilmore, and Suni Williams, together with cosmonauts Nikolai Chub, Alexander Grebenkin, and Oleg Kononenko.
Worldwide and Personal House Missions
At the moment, three astronauts are residing on China’s Tiangong area station: Li Cong, Li Guangsu, and Ye Guangfu. Moreover, 4 astronauts are on the Polaris Daybreak mission aboard a Crew Dragon capsule. This mission, which started on September 10, 2024, goals to set new information in non-public area exploration, together with a deliberate spacewalk by Jared Isaacman and Sarah Gillis on September 12, 2024.
Data and Milestones
The document for the most individuals in area at one time was 20, set briefly in Might 2023 after which once more on January 26, 2024. This document was achieved when six area vacationers joined 14 astronauts in orbit. For individuals who contemplate the Kármán line because the boundary of area, the document for most individuals in area stays at 19, tied by the Soyuz launch and Blue Origin’s suborbital New Shepard mission on December 11, 2021.
This achievement displays the rising tempo of human area exploration and worldwide cooperation in orbit.
