Anton Shkaplerov facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Anton Shkaplerov
Shkaplerov at the Expedition 42/43 crew news conference in 2014
Born	(1972-02-20) 20 February 1972 (age 53) Sevastopol, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union
Status	Retired
Nationality	Russian
Occupation	Colonel, Russian Air Force
Space career
Roscosmos cosmonaut
Time in space	709 days 08 hours 04 minutes
Selection	2003 Intercosmos Group
Total EVAs	3
Total EVA time	21 hours 39 minutes
Missions	Soyuz TMA-22 (Expedition 29/30), Soyuz TMA-15M (Expedition 42/43), Soyuz MS-07 (Expedition 54/55), Soyuz MS-19 (Expedition 65/66)
Mission insignia

Anton Nikolaevich Shkaplerov is a brave Russian cosmonaut who has traveled to space four times! He was born on February 20, 1972. He is now a retired cosmonaut, but he spent over 700 days living and working in space.

Anton Shkaplerov's Early Life

Anton Shkaplerov was born in Sevastopol, Crimea, on February 20, 1972. He is married to Tatyana Petrovna, and they have two daughters. His parents are Nikolay Ivanovich and Tamara Viktorovna Shkaplerov.

In 1989, Anton learned to fly a Yakovlev Yak-52 airplane. After finishing high school that same year, he joined the Kachinsk Air Force Pilot School. He became a pilot-engineer in 1994. Later, in 1997, he graduated from the N. E. Zukovskiy Air Force Engineering School. Anton enjoys sports, traveling, fishing, and golf in his free time.

Anton Shkaplerov's Cosmonaut Journey

Shkaplerov during a spacewalk in February 2012.

After finishing his studies in 1997, Anton Shkaplerov worked as a senior pilot-instructor in the Russian Air Force. He flew different types of airplanes, including the Yak-52, L-29, and MiG-29. He was a skilled pilot and also an expert in parachute training, having completed over 300 parachute jumps!

In May 2003, Anton was chosen to become a test-cosmonaut at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center. He went through special training and officially became a test cosmonaut in June 2005. In 2007, he worked for the Russian Space Agency in Houston, Texas. He was also a backup commander for Expedition 22, which meant he was ready to go to space if the main commander couldn't.

First Space Mission: Expedition 29/30

Anton Shkaplerov served as a Flight Engineer for Expedition 29 and Expedition 30 on the International Space Station (ISS). He was the commander of the Soyuz TMA-22 spacecraft. He launched into space with fellow flight engineers Anatoli Ivanishin and Dan Burbank on November 16, 2011.

After two days, their spacecraft docked with the ISS. This marked the start of their long stay in space. On February 12, 2012, Anton and another cosmonaut, Oleg Kononenko, went on a spacewalk. They spent 6 hours and 15 minutes outside the ISS. During their spacewalk, they installed shields to protect the Zvezda Service Module from tiny space debris. They also moved a crane called Strela 1. Anton and his crew spent 165 days in space before returning to Earth on April 27, 2012.

Second Space Mission: Expedition 42/43

Shkaplerov (left) with Scott Kelly in the Destiny laboratory.

On November 23, 2014, Anton Shkaplerov commanded the Soyuz TMA-15M spacecraft. He launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome with flight engineers Samantha Cristoforetti and Terry Virts. They even brought three Lego minifigure replicas with them!

About six hours later, their spacecraft successfully docked with the ISS. They joined the Expedition 42 crew, which included commander Barry Wilmore and flight engineers Aleksandr Samokutyayev and Yelena Serova. The crew lived in space for 199 days. They returned to Earth on June 11, 2015. After this mission, Anton had spent a total of 365 days in space.

Third Space Mission: Expedition 54/55

Anton Shkaplerov launched into space again on December 17, 2017. He was on board the Soyuz MS-07 spacecraft with NASA astronaut Scott Tingle and Norishige Kanai from JAXA (Japan's space agency). He was a flight engineer for Expedition 54 and later became the commander of Expedition 55.

On February 2, 2018, Anton and Expedition 54 commander Alexander Misurkin performed another spacewalk. This spacewalk lasted a very long time: 8 hours and 13 minutes! They replaced an old electronics box for a communications antenna. This spacewalk set a new record for the longest Russian spacewalk at that time.

Fourth Space Mission: Expedition 65/66

A Russian stamp celebrating the film The Challenge.

Anton Shkaplerov's fourth trip to the ISS was on October 5, 2021. He flew on the Soyuz MS-19 spacecraft. What made this mission special was that he traveled with film director Klim Shipenko and actress Yulia Peresild. They were filming a movie called The Challenge in space! This was a joint project by Roscosmos (Russia's space agency), Channel One Russia, and Yellow, Black and White studio. Anton even appeared in some scenes of the movie.

Shipenko and Peresild returned to Earth on a different spacecraft, Soyuz MS-18, with Oleg Novitsky. Anton stayed on the ISS and became the commander for Expedition 66. On January 19, 2022, he took part in another spacewalk. It lasted 7 hours and 11 minutes. During this spacewalk, they prepared the Prichal module. This module helps new Soyuz and Progress spacecraft dock with the ISS. Anton landed back on Earth on March 30, 2022, with Russian cosmonaut Pyotr Dubrov and American astronaut Mark Vande Hei.

Spaceflight Statistics

Anton Shkaplerov has spent a lot of time in space! Here's a quick look at his missions:

More About Space

• A Beautiful Planet - This is a 2016 IMAX documentary film. It shows amazing scenes of Earth from space and features Anton Shkaplerov and other ISS crew members.
• List of Heroes of the Russian Federation - This list includes many brave people, like Anton, who have been recognized for their service to Russia.

See also

In Spanish: Anton Shkaplerov para niños