Expedition 44 - crewsigned NASA glossy photo

EXPEDITION 44 COMPLETE CREW-SIGNED NASA PHOTOGRAPH

Official 8 × 10-Inch Glossy • Signed by All Six Astronauts and Cosmonauts

An outstanding official NASA Expedition 44 crew photograph, measuring approximately 8 × 10 inches and hand-signed by all six astronauts and cosmonauts who served together aboard the International Space Station.

The complete international crew consisted of:

Gennady Padalka — Roscosmos cosmonaut and Expedition 44 Commander
Mikhail Kornienko — Roscosmos cosmonaut and Flight Engineer
Scott Kelly — NASA astronaut and Flight Engineer
Oleg Kononenko — Roscosmos cosmonaut and Flight Engineer
Kjell Lindgren — NASA astronaut and Flight Engineer
Kimiya Yui — Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut and Flight Engineer

NASA’s official Expedition 44 portrait identifies the full six-person crew and shows, from left, Kjell Lindgren, Oleg Kononenko, Kimiya Yui, Scott Kelly, Gennady Padalka and Mikhail Kornienko.

Expedition 44: International Research Aboard the ISS

Expedition 44 took place aboard the International Space Station during 2015. The mission brought together astronauts and cosmonauts representing the United States, Russia and Japan for an extensive program of scientific research, technology demonstrations and station operations.

The expedition began under the command of veteran Roscosmos cosmonaut Gennady Padalka. Scott Kelly and Mikhail Kornienko were already aboard the station as participants in the historic nearly year-long mission, while Oleg Kononenko, Kjell Lindgren and Kimiya Yui arrived aboard Soyuz TMA-17M.

The crew conducted research involving human health, plant growth, microbiology, materials science and advanced technology. Expedition 44 experiments included growing and tasting salad crops in orbit, monitoring microbial life aboard the station and studying liquid crystals with potential applications in electronic display technology.

The Expedition 44 Crew

Gennady Padalka

Gennady Padalka commanded Expedition 44 and was one of the most experienced space travelers of his generation.

During this mission, Padalka surpassed the previous record for cumulative time spent in space. By the end of his career, he had accumulated 878 days in orbit across five missions, establishing a long-standing world record.

Padalka returned to Earth in September 2015 aboard Soyuz TMA-16M with visiting crew members Andreas Mogensen and Aidyn Aimbetov.

Mikhail Kornienko

Mikhail Kornienko served as the Russian participant in the joint NASA–Roscosmos nearly year-long mission.

Together with Scott Kelly, he remained aboard the ISS for approximately 340 days. Their extended stay allowed scientists to study the effects of prolonged exposure to microgravity, radiation, isolation and the confined spacecraft environment.

The mission generated valuable medical and operational data for future long-duration expeditions beyond low Earth orbit.

Scott Kelly

NASA astronaut Scott Kelly served as an Expedition 44 flight engineer and the American participant in the year-long mission.

Kelly’s identical twin brother, former astronaut Mark Kelly, participated in related research on Earth. Comparing the brothers gave scientists a rare opportunity to study how prolonged spaceflight may affect the human body, including changes involving vision, immune response, bone density and gene activity.

Scott Kelly completed approximately 340 consecutive days aboard the ISS and accumulated more than 500 days in space during his astronaut career.

Oleg Kononenko

Oleg Kononenko arrived aboard Soyuz TMA-17M as the spacecraft’s commander and served as an Expedition 44 flight engineer.

A highly experienced Roscosmos cosmonaut, Kononenko subsequently completed additional long-duration missions and commanded several ISS expeditions. His career ultimately placed him among the most experienced space travelers in history.

Kjell Lindgren

NASA astronaut and physician Kjell Lindgren made his first spaceflight during Expeditions 44 and 45.

His medical background supported the station’s research into human health and the effects of long-duration spaceflight. Lindgren also participated in station maintenance and extravehicular activities during his mission.

Kimiya Yui

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Kimiya Yui also made his first journey into space aboard Soyuz TMA-17M.

During his stay, Yui supported Japanese experiments and operations involving the Kibo laboratory module and the station’s robotic systems. His flight represented another important contribution by Japan to the multinational ISS partnership.

The arrival of Kononenko, Lindgren and Yui completed the expedition’s full six-person complement. NASA documentation confirms the three as the Expedition 44/45 Soyuz TMA-17M crew.

Collecting Significance

Complete six-person expedition photographs are considerably more difficult to assemble than photographs signed by a single Soyuz crew. Obtaining every autograph required signatures from two separate spacecraft crews representing three national space agencies.

This example combines:

• Official NASA 8 × 10-inch glossy photograph
• Hand-signed by all six Expedition 44 crew members
• Representation of NASA, Roscosmos and JAXA
• Direct association with the Kelly–Kornienko year-long mission
• Signature of record-setting cosmonaut Gennady Padalka
• Signatures from the first spaceflights of Kjell Lindgren and Kimiya Yui
• Excellent overall condition

A highly desirable and visually impressive artifact documenting an important expedition in International Space Station history and one of the most significant long-duration human-spaceflight studies ever undertaken.

Condition: Excellent.