Following the launch of the manned spacecraft "Soyuz MS-26", 19 people were simultaneously in near-Earth orbit, setting a new record. Previously, in May 2023, the record was set at 17 people due to a crew changeover at the Chinese orbital station.
Currently in orbit are Russian cosmonauts Ivan Wagner, Alexey Ovchinin, and NASA astronaut Donald Pettit, as well as the crew of the 71st long-term ISS expedition and taikonauts at the Chinese orbital station "Tiangong". In addition, the commercial mission Polaris Dawn team is also in space.
Cosmonautics historian Alexander Zheleznyakov noted that the record was unplanned. If the American Boeing Starliner spacecraft flight had gone according to plan, there might not have been a new record. For ordinary people, this is a significant event, emphasizing the growing presence of humans in space.
Earlier, www1.ru reported that "Soyuz MS-26" launched from Baikonur.
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"Soyuz MS-26": Russian cosmonauts are ready for accidents during the flight to the ISS
