(ANSA) - Rome, June 11 - Italy's first female astronaut
Samantha Cristoforetti came back down to Earth Thursday after
setting a new record of 200 days for a woman in space.
The stint at the International Space Station (ISS) overtook
that of America's Sunita Williams, who spent 195 days in space
in 2007.
Cristoforetti's ISS spell, almost a month longer than
planned because of a technical hitch, was also the longest
uninterrupted spaceflight by a European astronaut.
"We are very proud of you, Captain," tweeted Premier Matteo
Renzi, while President Sergio Mattarella said he was expecting
'AstroSamantha' at the presidential palace to voice his "deep
esteem and gratitude" on behalf of the whole nation.
Education Minister Stefania Giannini thanked Cristoforetti
for "giving lustre to Italy" and tweeted, "Welcome back, we're
waiting for you in the schools to relive your adventure".
Defence Minister Roberta Pinotti also sent a welcome back
to Cristoforetti, a captain in Italy's Air Force, where she is a
fighter pilot.
"Welcome back! First Italian woman in space, Italian Air
Force captain. Pride of the nation and of the #armedforces",
Pinotti tweeted.
Interior Minister Angelino Alfano tweeted, "Welcome back!
Thanks for letting us dream and see space together with you.
#italianpride".
A blizzard of ironic tweets from ordinary Italians also
marked Cristoforetti's return, some of them remarking that she
had shown it was "easier to get back home from space than on an
Italian railways train".
Cristoforetti was also welcomed by a trio of pioneering
Italian forerunners, Paolo Nespoli, Roberto Vittori and Luca
Parmitano, now veterans with the Italian and European space
agencies.
"Italy in space is now a lot stronger thanks to Sam," they
all concurred.
Roberto Battiston, head of the Italian Space Agency, said
"the Futura mission was a great success.
"We are more than ready for fresh flights with other
Italian astronauts," he added.
"We're thinking of planning two new flights, the first in
2017 and the other one between 2018 and 2019," he told ANSA.
New projects included ground-breaking plans to observe
heavenly bodies including Mars and new uses for the Vega rocket
which will enter a new phase of life.
Cristoforetti, who touched down in the Kazakh steppe after
a three-hour ride tired but smiling with her two colleagues,
Russian Anton Shkaplerov and American Terry Virts, is now set to
go through a rigorous but also relaxing programme of
rehabilitation to get used to gravity again after almost seven
months being weightless.
Cristoforetti began the European Space Agency's
long-duration Futura mission last November.
"The 200th day in space began very early," said
Cristoforetti in a post to her Twitter account shortly before
leaving the ISS.
"It has been an exciting journey and thanks for the
company! But now is is time to return home to earth," she
continued.
Her mission was unexpectedly extended because of a delay
when Russia's Progress 59 resupply spacecraft did not arrive as
scheduled at the ISS.
Cristoforetti has become something of a media star, thanks
to her social media presence, including tweets from space and
photos posted on social networks.
She made a concerted effort to reach out to the public and
make space exploration and science a subject more accessible to
everyday citizens.
Cristoforetti's time in space saw a lot of research
conducted on genetics and biology, keeping ants, fruit flies,
plants and worms for international studies on the effects of
spaceflight over many generations.
Among other things, she used the first space 3-D printer
which aimed to show the viability of making spare parts in
orbit.
She also performed new manoeuvres with the ISS's robot arm
and helped move the Italian Leonardo space module to make room
for future US developments.
Her stay also marked the first time astronauts were able to
enjoy Italian-style espresso coffee.
In April, in fact, Cristoforetti and Virts welcomed aboard
the SpaceX Dragon commercial cargo craft with a payload
including Italian coffee.
The so-called "Dragon capsule" was loaded with scientific
material for 40 experiments, along with supplies including an
innovative Italian espresso machine.
Italian-made ISSpresso, the zero-gravity coffee machine,
could innovate space food, the makers said.
Developed by aerospace company Argotec, aerospace giant
Finmeccanica and coffee king Lavazza, the machine was designed
to be anchored to the space station's floor and required
120-volt power.
The espresso is made from ISSpresso capsules, which when
processed require 7 bars of atmospheric pressure and space
station tap water for 75-degree-Celsius-heated serving.
Argotec's Davide Alvino said the coffee experience would be
different as "ISSpresso is above all a complex experiment in the
physics of the fluids that employs sophisticated technology to
validate a system capable of ensuring the management of
different liquids at high pressure and temperature in a space
environment".
If ISSpresso is successful over the long term, it could
improve space food nutrition by allowing the production of other
beverages including soups and broths.
"With the next supplies, we could send into orbit new
capsules to prepare other types of beverages, such as tea and
herbal teas, and also consomme'", Alvino said.
Cristoforetti comes back down to Earth
Italian set new record for longest stint in space by a woman