Expedition 43 facts for kids
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| Mission type | ISS Expedition |
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| Expedition | |
| Space Station | International Space Station |
| Began | 11 March 2015 UTC |
| Ended | 11 June 2015 UTC |
| Arrived aboard | Soyuz TMA-15M Soyuz TMA-16M |
| Departed aboard | Soyuz TMA-15M Soyuz TMA-16M Soyuz TMA-18M |
| Crew | |
| Crew size | 6 |
| Members | Expedition 42/43: Anton Shkaplerov Samantha Cristoforetti Terry W. Virts Expedition 43/44: Gennady Padalka Mikhail Korniyenko Scott Kelly |
 Expedition 43 mission patch  (l-r) Padalka, Kelly, Shkaplerov, Cristoforetti, Kornienko, Virts ISS expeditions
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Expedition 43 was the 43rd time astronauts and cosmonauts lived and worked on the International Space Station (ISS). This mission started on March 11, 2015. It began when the Soyuz TMA-14M spacecraft left the station. The mission ended on June 11, 2015, when the Soyuz TMA-15M spacecraft departed.
The crew of Expedition 43 stayed on the ISS for an extra month. This happened because a cargo spacecraft, Progress M-27M, had a problem. Scientists needed time to figure out what went wrong. During this time, the ISS even moved its orbit a bit. This was to avoid a piece of space junk that was floating nearby.
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Cool Inventions in Space
During Expedition 43, the crew tested some neat new things. One was the ISSpresso machine. This machine could make fresh espresso coffee in space!
They also tried a special cup. This cup was designed to let astronauts drink liquids in microgravity (where things float). It used a trick called capillary flow. This means the liquid sticks to the sides of the cup and moves towards your mouth. An astronaut named Donald Pettit first thought of a similar cup in 2008. Scientists at Portland State University helped make the new zero-gravity coffee cup even better.
Meet the Astronauts
Six brave people were part of Expedition 43. They came from different countries. Some were already on the ISS from the previous mission, Expedition 42. Others arrived later to join them.
First Part of the Mission (March 2015)
- Commander: Terry W. Virts, Jr. from NASA (USA). This was his second spaceflight.
- Flight Engineer 1: Anton Shkaplerov from RSA (Russia). This was his second spaceflight.
- Flight Engineer 2: Samantha Cristoforetti from ASI-ESA (Italy). This was her first spaceflight.
Second Part of the Mission (March to June 2015)
Three more astronauts joined the crew for the second part of the mission:
- Flight Engineer 3: Gennady Padalka from RSA (Russia). This was his fifth spaceflight.
- Flight Engineer 4: Mikhail Korniyenko from RSA (Russia). This was his second spaceflight.
- Flight Engineer 5: Scott Kelly from NASA (USA). This was his fourth spaceflight.
An astronaut named Yury Lonchakov was originally supposed to be Flight Engineer 3. However, he decided to leave the Russian space agency in 2013. He took a job at a company called Gazprom instead.
Images for kids
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View of Earth taken during ISS Expedition 43
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View of Earth from the Cupola during Expedition 43
See also
In Spanish: Expedición 43 para niños
