All Astronauts
LEGENDActiveESA
LEGENDActiveESAESA·🇮🇹 Italy·Born 1977
Samantha Cristoforetti
First Italian woman in space (2014)
331d
Days in Space
2
Missions
1
EVAs
7h
EVA Time
To live in space, even for a short while, is to come back changed — your sense of belonging expands to the whole planet.
I never had a plan B. I always wanted to be an astronaut.
Biography
First Italian woman in space and first European female ISS commander. Fighter pilot turned astronaut, known for making espresso in space.
Before NASAItalian Air Force fighter pilot who flew the AMX ground-attack aircraft before being selected as an ESA astronaut in 2009.
Records & Firsts
Notable accomplishments by Samantha Cristoforetti
- First Italian woman in space (2014)
- First European female ISS commander (2022)
- Longest single spaceflight by a European at the time (199 days, 2014-15)
Mission Timeline
- Flight Engineer
Soyuz TMA-15M
Expedition 42/43 (Futura)
Launch: Nov 23, 2014Landing: Jun 11, 2015Duration: 199 days - Commander
SpaceX Crew Dragon Freedom
SpaceX Crew-4 / Expedition 67 (Minerva)
Launch: Apr 27, 2022Landing: Oct 14, 2022Duration: 170 days- First European female ISS commander
Beyond the Mission
Causes They Champion
Women in STEMScience communication
Languages
ItalianEnglishGermanFrenchRussian
Awards & Honors
- Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (Cavaliere di Gran Croce)
- Légion d'honneur
Authored
- Diary of an Apprentice Astronaut(2020)
Fun fact
She operated the first espresso machine in space — the ISSpresso — during her Futura mission, and held the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman until Peggy Whitson and later Christina Koch surpassed it.
Learn More
More Astronauts
Other space travelers from ESA
