The SpaceX Crew Dragon Spaceship Sets a New Record for Most Days in Space

SpaceX's Crew Dragon has just set a new record, officially becoming the American astronaut spacecraft with the most days in space.

The spacecraft's Crew-1 - composed of NASA astronauts Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover, Shannon Walker, and JAXA astronaut Soichi Noguchi - has docked the SpaceX Crew Dragon to the US module of the International Space Station last November 17, 2020. In a statement from NASA, the Crew Dragon team will "surpass the record of 84 days set by the Skylab 4 crew on February 8, 1974."

SpaceX Crew 1

Notable for being the first operational mission under the Commercial Crew Program, where NASA teams up with American aerospace manufacturers to advance its space exploration program, the Space X Crew 1 used the spacecraft renamed "Resilience" carried by a Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center.

Upon docking on the ISS, the four astronauts worked and lived with the three crew members of the Soyuz MS-17 mission - Cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, and NASA astronaut Kathleen Rubins - onboard the space station.

It also marks the first of the Crew Dragon crewed missions, each scheduled to spend about six months (180 days) in orbit between their launch and reentry back to Earth. In commemoration of the new milestone, Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi posted a "historic joint view photo" on his Twitter account.

Skylab 4's 84 Days in Space

The previous record belonged to Skylab 4, the third crewed Skylab mission and the last to dock at the ISS's original US module. Originally launched on November 16, 1973, from the Cape Canaveral station, It spent a little over 84 days in space, logging more than 6,000 astronaut-utilization hours conducting various tasks such as experiments and observations, as well as the unloading and stowing of laboratory equipment. Among the highlights of their mission was the observation of the Sun, Earth, and the comet Kohoutek that passed by earth at the time.

Led by commander Gerald P. Carr, science pilot Edward G. Gibson, and pilot William R. Pogue, it also marked NASA's largest all-rookie crew at the time.

The Skylab 4 crew also had its share of controversy on December 28, 1973, in what became known as the Skylab mutiny. As the all-rookie crew had difficulties maintaining the proposed schedule, it took a toll on the member, working extended hours in a challenging environment to catch up. However, ground control was of a different opinion, requiring the astronauts to work through mealtimes and supposed rest days.

While there has been controversy on whether the "mutiny" ever happened at all has been under question. However, reports said that on December 28, the Skylab 4 crew announced an unscheduled rest day, turning off comms, and got some rest.

As the two parties reached a compromise, some tasks were relegated to less priority, and the crew had sufficient rest time. This, in turn, improved their performance. However, the three rookies never joined another space mission.

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