Through the glass ceiling

Last year, astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti set new records after spending almost 200 days away from Earth

Space travel has changed a little since the days of Yuri Gagarin. In, the world’s first ever astronaut spent just 89 minutes in space; scientists feared any prolonged exposure to weightlessness could be dangerous, potentially even fatal. On 11 June, Samantha Cristoforetti returned from the International Space Station (ISS), having set new records for the longest uninterrupted space flight by a European astronaut and the longest single stay in space by a woman. She’d spent 199 days and 16 hours away from Earth.

Being confined to 820 cubic meters of metal 400 kilometers up and witnessing 16 sunrises and sunsets a day can do strange things to mind and body, she says. “The first couple of months flew past, it was absolutely exhilarating,” says the Italian Air Force pilot and engineer. “But there were times when it felt as though a year had passed because so much had happened and Earth was so far away. Sometimes, it felt as if I’d been floating all my life, as though I’d never had to walk.”

Life on board the ISS isn’t just about pretending to be Superman: astronauts have a busy 40-hour week full of scientific experiments, maintenance tasks and 90 minutes of exercise a day to counter the effects of weightlessness. Cristoforetti spent some of her downtime documenting life in space on social media.

Photos and videos went viral as she showed how weightlessness affects everything from eating and sleeping to nail trimming and going to the toilet. She also made the first ever zero-gravity espresso, posing for the occasion in her own homemade Star Trek uniform.

“Space is something that should belong to humanity as a whole,” she says, explaining her drive to share. “Going into space should be a collective journey for us all. We’re at the beginning of that journey, so only a few of us are lucky enough to experience it, which is why it’s important that we share it.”

That journey may take us to Mars some day. The ISS is acting as a springboard for more adventurous missions, with space agencies testing a range of technologies as well as the physiological and psychological effects of long-term stays in space. In, some answers should be forthcoming: Cristoforetti spent the last three months of her stay with two new crewmates who will be on the ISS for a whole year.

Through the glass ceiling

Last year, astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti set new records after spending almost 200 days away from Earth

Through the glass ceiling

Last year, astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti set new records after spending almost 200 days away from Earth

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