Sergei Krikalev, a Soviet cosmonaut, found himself stranded in space for 311 days during a mission on the “Mir” space station. In total, he spent 803 days, 9 hours, and 39 minutes in space throughout his career.
On December 26, 1991, while Krikalev was in space, the Soviet Union was dissolved. Due to the ensuing political turmoil, Krikalev had to remain in space far longer than planned. He finally returned to Earth on March 25, 1992.
Having been away from Earth’s gravity for such a prolonged period, Krikalev aged 0.02 seconds less than people on Earth, an example of time dilation.
He is often referred to as the “Last Soviet Citizen” because of his unique situation. Krikalev retired in 2007.
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