Gennady Padalka facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Gennady Padalka
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Padalka at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in March 2015
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Gennady Ivanovich Padalka
21 June 1958 Krasnodar, Russian SFSR, USSR
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| Status | Retired |
| Alma mater | Yeysk Military Aviation College |
| Occupation | Pilot |
| Awards |
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| Space career | |
| Roscosmos cosmonaut | |
| Rank | Colonel, Russian Air Force |
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Time in space
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878 days, 11 hours and 29 minutes |
| Selection | TsPK-10 Cosmonaut Group (1989) |
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Total EVAs
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10 |
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Total EVA time
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38 hours and 40 minutes |
| Missions |
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Mission insignia
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| Retirement | 28 April 2017 |
Gennady Ivanovich Padalka (born June 21, 1958) is a famous Russian cosmonaut and a former officer in the Russian Air Force. He is known for spending a lot of time in space. In fact, he used to hold the record for the most time spent in space, with a total of 878 days! He also commanded the International Space Station (ISS) four times, which is more than anyone else. Padalka worked on both the Mir space station and the ISS.
Contents
About Gennady Padalka's Life
Gennady Padalka is married to Irina Anatoliyevna Padalka. They have three daughters named Yuliya, Yekaterina, and Sonya. When he is not flying in space, he enjoys going to the theater. He also likes exciting sports like parachute jumping and diving.
Education and Training
Gennady Padalka finished his studies at Yeysk Military Aviation College in 1979. After that, he became a pilot in the Russian Air Force. He flew many different types of aircraft. He even became a senior pilot and reached the rank of colonel. Padalka has flown for 1500 hours and made over 300 parachute jumps. He was also an instructor for parachute training.
Awards and Honors
Gennady Padalka has received many important awards. He was given the title of Hero of the Russian Federation. This is one of the highest honors in Russia. He also earned the title of Russian Federation Test-Cosmonaut. He has received several medals for his service to his country and to space exploration.
Cosmonaut Career
Gennady Padalka started his training to become a cosmonaut in 1989. This training took place at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center. By 1991, he was officially qualified as a test-cosmonaut.
Mir Space Station Mission
On August 13, 1998, Gennady Padalka went into space for the first time. He launched with Sergei Avdeyev on the Soyuz TM-28 spacecraft. Their mission was to work on the Mir space station. They had to fix some important systems and get the station ready for its final journey back to Earth. Padalka spent 198 days and 16 hours in space during this mission. He returned to Earth on February 28, 1999.
International Space Station Missions
After his time on Mir, Padalka trained for missions to the International Space Station (ISS). The ISS is a huge laboratory in space where astronauts from different countries live and work.
Commanding Expedition 9
In 2004, Padalka became the commander of Expedition 9 on the ISS. He launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on April 21, 2004. During his six months on the station, he continued important science experiments. He also helped maintain the station's systems. He even performed four spacewalks during this mission. Padalka spent 187 days in space during Expedition 9.
Leading Expeditions 19 and 20
Padalka returned to the ISS in 2009. He commanded both Expedition 19 and Expedition 20. He launched on the Soyuz TMA-14 spacecraft on March 26, 2009. He was also the commander for the first time that six people lived on the space station at once. He came back to Earth on October 11, 2009.
Expeditions 31 and 32
In May 2012, Padalka went to the ISS for his third mission. He started as a flight engineer for Expedition 31. Then, he became the commander of Expedition 32. He launched on Soyuz TMA-04M on May 15, 2012. He returned to Earth on September 17, 2012.
Expeditions 43 and 44
Padalka's last mission to the ISS was during Expedition 43 and Expedition 44. He launched on Soyuz TMA-16M. He landed back on Earth on September 12, 2015. During this mission, Padalka set a new record for the most time spent in space by any person. This record stood for many years.
Retirement from Space Travel
In April 2017, Gennady Padalka announced that he was retiring from being a cosmonaut. He explained that he did not see many chances to fly to space again soon. He said he was "tired of doing nothing" and wanted to move on.
Spacewalks and Their Importance
A spacewalk, also called an Extravehicular Activity (EVA), is when an astronaut or cosmonaut leaves their spacecraft to work in space. Gennady Padalka performed many spacewalks during his career.
First Spacewalk on Mir
On September 15, 1998, Padalka did his first spacewalk. He was on the Mir space station with Sergei Avdeyev. They went inside a damaged module called Spektr. They reconnected some cables and closed a hatch. This spacewalk lasted for 30 minutes.
Second Spacewalk on Mir
On November 10, 1998, Padalka and Avdeyev went outside Mir again. They installed a special detector to look for meteoroids. They also launched a small satellite called Sputnik-41. This spacewalk lasted for 5 hours and 54 minutes.
ISS Spacewalks with Michael Fincke
Padalka performed several spacewalks from the Pirs Docking Compartment on the ISS with NASA astronaut Michael Fincke.
- June 24, 2004: Their first spacewalk together was cut short. Michael Fincke's spacesuit had a problem with its oxygen tank. The spacewalk only lasted 14 minutes.
- June 30, 2004: They successfully fixed a broken electrical device on the space station. This spacewalk lasted 5 hours and 40 minutes.
- August 3, 2004: They installed new communication equipment and replaced old experiments on the Zvezda module. They also installed new antennas for visiting spacecraft. This spacewalk lasted 4 hours and 20 minutes.
- September 3, 2004: They replaced a pump control panel on the Zarya module. They also installed three communication antennas on the Zvezda module. This spacewalk lasted 5 hours and 21 minutes.
Spacewalks with Michael Barratt
Padalka also did spacewalks with NASA astronaut Michael Barratt.
- June 5, 2009: They installed antennas and cables to prepare for a new module called Mini Research Module 2 (MRM-2). This spacewalk lasted 4 hours and 54 minutes.
- June 10, 2009: This was an "internal spacewalk." They wore spacesuits inside a depressurized part of the Zvezda module. They moved a docking part to make room for the MRM-2. This short spacewalk lasted 12 minutes.
Spacewalk with Yuri Malenchenko
On August 20, 2012, Padalka performed his ninth spacewalk with cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko. They moved a large crane arm called Strela-2. This was important because the Pirs module, where it was, would later be removed for a new module called Nauka. They also launched a small satellite and retrieved experiments. This spacewalk lasted 5 hours and 51 minutes.
See also
In Spanish: Guennadi Pádalka para niños
- List of Heroes of the Russian Federation
