Christina Koch
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Christina Koch returns to Earth after a record 328 days in space
After 328 days in space, NASA astronaut Christina Koch is back on Earth. She returns holding the record for the longest stay in space by a woman, and she has earned bragging rights for another major milestone: she and fellow NASA astronaut Jessica Meir completed the first all-female spacewalk during Koch's extended stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
Christina Koch breaks record for longest spaceflight by a woman
NASA's Christine Koch just made history. As expected, the astronaut just broke the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman as of December 28th, eclipsing Peggy Whitson's 288 days from 2016-2017 thanks to an extended stay at the International Space Station. She should hold a comfortable lead, too. Koch is poised to spend a total of 328 days in orbit before she returns to Earth in February 2020.
Christina Koch will set a record for longest spaceflight by a woman
Thanks to NASA's recent schedule changes, astronaut Christina Koch will soon hold the record for the longest space flight by a woman. Koch arrived at the International Space Station on March 14 and has already conducted one spacewalk. She'll now remain in orbit until February 2020, and she'll surpass the current record, which is 288 days, held by Peggy Whitson. But Koch will fall just short of the longest spaceflight by a NASA astronaut -- Scott Kelly's 340-day trip.
An ill-fitting spacesuit cancels NASA's first all-female spacewalk
A historic spacewalk was scheduled to occur this week, with only women operating outside the ISS for the first time ever. News of the event was revealed earlier this month when a flight controller tweeted about the schedule, but as NASA noted at the time "assignments and schedules could always change." Now that has happened, as the second of three planned spacewalks will instead be performed by a man and a woman, Nick Hague and Christina Koch. According to NASA, last week when Hague performed the first operation with astronaut Anne McClain, there was an issue with the fit of McClain's spacesuit. In what is essentially the "t-shirt" area of the Enhanced EMU suit astronauts wear on spacewalks, the Hard Upper Torso (H.U.T.) comes in three sizes: Medium, Large and XL. McClain had trained in both the medium and large sized units, but discovered that the medium size worked better for her. According to a spokesperson, there are two medium-sized units onboard, however only one can be ready in time, so Koch will go with Hague instead and history will have to be made another day. While there's some confusion over how this could happen, it seems like there are a few issues going on. Of course astronauts are measured extensively before their trip, but there is no way to simulate the extended effects of zero gravity on their body and earlier this month McClain tweeted that she's grown by two inches since launch.
