Astronaut, Academy grad returns to Earth after 141 days in space

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U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo. --  A 1995 Air Force Academy graduate was one of three astronauts to return to Earth Dec. 11 after a nearly five month mission aboard the International Space Station.

Former Academy cadet and NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren, Oleg Kononenko of the Russian Federal Space Agency and Kimiya Yui of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency touched down in Kazakhstan, marking the first crew landing to occur after sunset and only the sixth nighttime Soyuz spacecraft return from the space station, according to a NASA news report.
This was Lindgren's first NASA mission. He spent 141 days in space, 200 miles above the Earth.

In space, the ISS crew observed the Earth and studied physical, biological and molecular science to advance technology and discover innovations that may someday benefit the Earth.
Lindgren successfully connected a spacecraft containing 7,000 pounds of supplies to the International Space Station Dec. 9, capturing the cargo vehicle with the ISS's robotic arm. The spacecraft contained research equipment and the first microsatellite to be deployed from a space station.

Lindgren took his first walk in space Oct. 27 when he joined astronaut Scott Kelly outside the ISS to work on its Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, designed to measure antimatter in cosmic rays, and search for evidence of dark matter. Lindgren and Kelly also worked on power and data cables to prepare for the installment of a spacecraft docking port. He took his second walk in space Nov. 6, when he and Kelly spent six hours outside the ISS to work on its cooling system.

In September, Lindgren chatted via teleconference from the ISS with children of Class of '95 graduates during a class reunion at the Academy.
As an Academy cadet, he was a Wings of Blue instructor, jumpmaster and a member of the Academy's intercollegiate national parachute team.


Visit www.nasa.gov/station for more information.