AstroSam to change into fifth European commander of ISS.

Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti will quickly change into the primary European girl to command the Worldwide Area Station (ISS), the European Area Company (ESA) introduced on Wednesday.

Cristoforetti, popularly identified in Italy as AstroSam, will take over from fellow Expedition 67 crew member Oleg Artemyev on 28 September in a handover ceremony to be broadcast dwell on ESA Internet TV.

In her new position, Cristoforetti will change into the fifth European commander of the ISS – following within the footsteps of fellow Italian Luca Parmitano – in addition to turning into the primary European girl to carry the place.

“I’m humbled by my appointment to the place of commander” – Cristoforetti mentioned – “and stay up for drawing on the expertise I’ve gained in area and on Earth to steer a really succesful workforce in orbit.”

The 45-year-old astronaut – Italy’s first girl in area – would be the third girl ISS commander on the earth after two Individuals, Sunita Williams and Shannon Walker.

Cristoforetti, a former Italian Air Drive pilot, holds the file for the longest uninterrupted spaceflight by a European astronaut (199 days, 16 hours), and till June 2017 held the file for the longest single area flight by a lady.