After record breaking feat, NASA astronaut returns to earth

NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson and two crew mates made a parachute touchdown in Kazakhstan on Saturday, capping a career-total 665 days in orbit, a U.S. record.

Whitson, 57, ended an extended stay of more than nine months aboard the International Space Station, a $100 billion US research laboratory that flies about 400 kilometres above Earth.

“I feel great,” the biochemist said during an in-flight interview on Monday. “I love working up here. It’s one of the most gratifying jobs I’ve ever had.”

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During her third mission aboard the station, Whitson spent much of her time on experiments, including studies of cancerous lung tissue and bone cells.

She also completed four spacewalks, adding to her six previous outings, to set a record for the most time spent spacewalking by a woman.

Two crewmates who launched with Whitson in November returned to Earth three months ago. She stayed aboard to fill a vacancy after Russia scaled down its station staff from three to two cosmonauts.

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