By KIRAT RANDHAWA
Staff Writer
Astronaut Christina Koch breaks the world record of days in spaceflight. The previous record-holder was Samantha Cristoforetti with 199 days. Koch surpasses Cristoforetti by 129 days with a whopping 328 days for a woman. This is no easy feat to achieve. There are numerous hazards that are in the astronaut business in and out of space. The all-time record holder for most days spent in space is 437 days with 18 on a single mission by Valeri Polyakov.
In space, astronauts find themselves being consumed in extreme amounts of boredom. This can end up causing minor mistakes that can eventually become a life-or-death situation. People that are aspiring to become astronauts have to take classes where their actions are monitored. In a spaceship, there is little to no technology provided for entertainment. Astronauts that spend days, weeks, or even years in space have to occupy themselves with activity, then astronauts return to Earth, the problems do not end. It is difficult for their bodies to adjust to Earth’s gravity. If the astronaut spends long amounts of time in space, their bodies become accustomed to the zero gravity in the ship. When they experience a sudden change of gravity, it can trigger certain physical/mental incapabilities. Some astronauts say that they could not stand straight. In worse cases, some astronauts lose the ability to ever walk again. The severity of their injuries varies on the amount of time they spend in zero gravity.
A career in the astronaut business takes hard work and dedication. First, you would need to obtain a Bachelor’s degree in either engineering, biological science, physical science, computer science, or mathematics. After that, one would need at least three years of space-related experiences or at minimum one thousand hours being a pilot on an aircraft. Then, there are two tests that you need to pass. They are a physical test and a vision test.