When a Russian spacecraft docked as a lifeboat for three stranded men on the International Space Station in February, one might wonder if Sergei Krikalev, who is leading the rescue mission, felt a sense of déjà vu. yeah.
He is sometimes known as “The Last Soviet,” even if that name doesn’t quite fit.(opens in new tab)He spent over 311 days in space when the Soviet Union collapsed 250 miles below him in 1991. He was scheduled to stay at Mir Base for five months. Instead, he stayed for nearly a year, never abandoning his outpost. .
A former cosmonaut, Krikarev is now the Executive Director of Human Spaceflight for the Russian Space Agency. Namely, NASA’s Frank He will help astronauts Rubio, Sergei Prokopiev, and Dmitry Peterin to safely return home after a water leak on the space station in December 2022. is under his supervision. However, their mission lasts for a year, until a new crew arrives to rescue them in another spaceship six months later.
Krikalev’s story, stranded in space, is now in the supposedly belated spotlight in a new podcast series called “The Last Soviet”.
In Russia, two space station ships had leaks in two months. match?
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If that name doesn’t ring a bell, he’s sometimes known as NSYNC’s other blonde heartthrob. That is correct: of JT in a cameo with Lance Bass singing “Tearin’ up my heart” Zoolander, A satire on the very serious ambitions of beautiful people.
Bass, now 43, might seem an unlikely bard for a podcast about the fall of the Iron Curtain and the failed space mission that left Krikalev without a nation. Few people may remember that boy band member Bass was about to go to space on a Soyuz spacecraft. In 2002, he trained intermittently at StarCity, Russia for about six months and was certified by Russia and his NASA.(opens in new tab) Fly a mission to the space station. At the last minute, the bus boarded the ship and lost his seat because his Hollywood investors couldn’t pay his $20 million to pay for the trip.
In a recent interview with Mashable, Bass said he learned of Krikalev’s story while training at a Russian military base for his mission. Since then, he has viewed the astronaut as a personal hero.
Former NSYNC band member Lance Bass trained for space travel in 2002.
Credit: AFP via Getty Images
“I heard it from other people, my professors, after class,” Bass said. “We were always bonding. We would go to the sauna, drink vodka, hit each other with tree branches.
“Funny, I don’t know if I’ve met him,” he continued.
Podcasts, iHeartPodcasts Productions(opens in new tab) With Kaleidoscope and Samizdat Audio, it emerges at a poignant time when the past serves as a prologue. The Russian-Ukrainian war resurfaces tensions from the Cold War, and again, for non-geopolitical reasons, the crew will spend an unplanned year in space. Despite conflict and strained relations with the United States, the space agencies of both countries have continued to work together on the space station.
A Russian spacecraft released coolant into space in December 2022. A second Russian freighter leaked two months after her.
Credit: NASA screenshot
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“Occasionally we would go to the sauna, drink vodka, and beat each other with tree branches, and they would tell us their history very well.”
Still, that global animosity makes it difficult to tell listeners about Krikalev’s story, Bass said.
“Unfortunately, due to the war, Russia does not allow him to speak, especially to American podcasters,” he said. “But we met his friends, family and colleagues and really heard his story through their eyes.”
Cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev spent 311 days in space until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Credit: NASA / Newsmakers via Getty Images
It is not clear whether Krikalev was prevented from participating. He recently attended a NASA press conference where he was questioned by US reporters about the status of the leaky Soyuz spacecraft. He said he was working “with his NASA colleagues” to minimize safety risks, though Roscosmos did not respond to requests for comment from his Mashable on the podcast. bottom.
The series debuted on February 15th(opens in new tab), which interweaves Bass’s own experiences with the Russian space program. It’s an unusual story in itself. The former pop star was just 23 when he solicited an offer to board the Soyuz spacecraft on a 10-day mission. , only two millionaires had traveled at their own expense before him. Had things gone according to plan, he might have become the youngest astronaut. He was on board the space station just three months before the fatal accident of his space shuttle his Columbia.
At the time, NSYNC was in the final stages of its final tour, Justin Timberlake wanted to pursue a solo album, and Bass was contemplating his next career move. Aside from his love of space since childhood, the idea of becoming an astronaut seemed very serendipitous to Bass.
Lance Bass (right) thought he was being “punked” by fellow celebrity Ashton Kutcher when he was offered a seat on a spaceship in 2002.
Credit: Ethan Miller via Getty Images
“At first I thought it was a joke because it sounds silly to say,” he said. “It was such a big show that I really thought Ashton Kutcher was ‘punking’ me. ”
Soon, he found himself in a US hospital undergoing surgical procedures to correct his irregular heartbeat. Then he boarded a plane to a Russian military base, immersed himself in his new language, and packed up an astrophysics class.
To simulate the effects of weightlessness in space, there were parabolic flights like Gravitrons in amusement parks and rides to centrifuges. Even a camping trip to test his wilderness survival instincts.
Two weeks before the launch of the rocket, preparations were casually completed. Without payment, Roscosmos gave up his seat to another cosmonaut.
A replacement Soyuz spacecraft docked at the International Space Station on February 25.
Credit: NASA
With Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin, and SpaceX now offering so many opportunities for civilians to fly into space, Bass is interested in finishing what he started. It was the podcast that rekindled his fire, he told his Mashable, and he hopes it will have the same effect on his listeners, with new audiences excited about the universe. claims.
On the other hand, as others have pondered Krikalev’s cosmic legacy, he hasn’t finished writing it.Recently damaged Soyuz spacecraft(opens in new tab) It will return to Earth empty later this month so that Roscosmos can conduct post-flight surveys.
Both the Russian space program and NASA decided it would be unsafe to bring the crew back in January.
“We know the situation is not very good,” Krikalev said.
