Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock
On August 18, 1991, a failed coup within the Soviet government set the stage for the USSR’s eventual dissolution later that year. While the world below was in turmoil, Sergei Krikalev, a seasoned cosmonaut, orbited the Earth from more than 200 miles above its surface.
Krikalev launched as a flight engineer to the Mir space station on May 18, 1991, for a scheduled five‑month mission—exactly three months before the Soviet Union began to unravel. By the time he returned, the country that had sponsored his flight no longer existed.
Radio exchanges over the months revealed that the Russian Federation was in a severe economic crisis; the ruble had collapsed, and funding for his return was impossible. Compounding the issue, the Baikonur Cosmodrome—his launch site—had become part of Kazakhstan, a newly independent nation.
Ultimately, Krikalev spent 311 days in orbit, doubling his original mission duration. While this prolonged stay threatened the health complications typical of long‑duration spaceflight, he successfully recovered and went on to fly additional missions.
Nasa/Getty Images
Although often labeled the “last Soviet,” Krikalev was not alone aboard Mir. For half of his mission he shared the station with fellow cosmonaut Aleksandr Volkov, but Krikalev’s role as the sole radio‑communications officer earned him that moniker.
During their time in orbit, Mir hosted crews from Austria and Japan, as Russia began leasing the station to foreign programs. None of these visitors brought a long‑term flight engineer, leaving Krikalev as the only professional capable of maintaining Mir’s operations.
Attempts were made to replace him with a Kazakh astronaut, but the fledgling nation lacked trained flight engineers.
Krikalev and Volkov re‑entered Earth on March 25, 1992, after Russia secured replacements for them. In a 2015 Guardian interview, Krikalev recalled feeling “satisfaction that I had done my job and done it well” and a “relief” after holding responsibility for so many months.
Nasa/Getty Images
Learning of the Soviet collapse and the extension of his mission triggered immediate concerns about his health. Extended microgravity is known to impact cardiovascular function and bone density, and astronauts face a heightened risk of heart disease. Krikalev described the months of recovery required after his long stay, yet he made a full return to flight.
He returned to space two years later and again in 2000 as a member of the International Space Station’s Expedition 1.
During his 10‑month stay, Krikalev completed 5,000 rotations around Earth. Relativistic effects mean time moves slightly slower for those traveling at high speeds, so upon his return he was approximately 0.02 seconds younger than his contemporaries—an intriguing, if negligible, reminder of Einstein’s theory.
