NASA astronaut and Expedition 68 Flight Engineer Frank Rubio at the International Space Station in 2022. Photo: NASA
NASA astronaut Frank Rubio just set a new record for the longest U.S. spaceflight mission.
Driving the news: Rubio, who's also the first person of Salvadoran origin to go to space, eclipsed the previous record of 355 consecutive days in space on Monday, per a NASA online statement.
- Rubio launched to the International Space Station with Russian cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin in September 2022.
What they're saying: "This is now the single longest mission for any of our NASA astronauts," NASA said.
- "He is set to return to Earth on Sept. 27, when he will have spent 371 days in space."
Flashback: NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei set the previous U.S. record in 2022.
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