Portrait of Sergei Krikalev

Birthday profile

Sergei Krikalev

Sergei Krikalev, Russian engineer and astronaut

Born
August 27, 1958
Age in 2026
68
Zodiac sign
Virgo
Birth year
1958

About Sergei Krikalev

Sergei Konstantinovich Krikalev (Russian: Сергей Константинович Крикалёв; born 27 August 1958) is a Russian mechanical engineer and former cosmonaut. He is a veteran of six spaceflights, including two long-duration missions to Mir, two short-duration missions aboard NASA's Space Shuttle, and two long-duration missions to the International Space Station (ISS). On STS-60, he became the first Russian cosmonaut to fly on the Shuttle, and on STS-88, he helped connect the first Russian and American ISS segments—becoming, alongside mission commander Robert Cabana, one of the first people to enter the station. He later joined the ISS's first long-duration crew, Expedition 1, and returned as commander of Expedition 11. Krikalev is sometimes referred to as the "last Soviet citizen," having been aboard Mir during the dissolution of the Soviet Union. With the country that launched him no longer existing, his return was delayed, and he remained in space for 311 days—twice as long as planned. He ultimately accumulated 803 days, 9 hours, and 39 minutes in space, placing him fourth on the list of those with the most time spent in space. He retired as a cosmonaut in 2007 and then served as deputy chief designer at Energia, where he contributed to the development of Russian spacecraft. From 2009 to 2014, he headed the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center. Since 2014, he has worked for Roscosmos, Russia's space agency, where he is a Deputy Director General leading human spaceflight efforts.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Career and life highlights

The world when Sergei Krikalev was born

Sergei Krikalev was born in 1958. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1958

  • #1 song"Nel Blu Dipinto di Blu (Volare)" – Domenico Modugno
  • Top movieGigi
  • Top TV showGunsmoke
  • Best-selling bookDoctor Zhivago – Boris Pasternak

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentNFL Championship "Greatest Game Ever Played" — Colts vs Giants
  • Top headlineNASA created as the United States enters the Space Race
  • Technology milestoneNASA founded
  • Defining fadHula Hoops — 25 million sold in 4 months
  • Notable inventionHula Hoop
  • World population2.93 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderDwight D. Eisenhower
  • Sports championNew York Yankees (World Series)
  • Also wonSt. Louis Hawks (NBA)
  • U.S. population174.1M

1958 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Sergei Krikalev's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19582026
Gas$0.31$3.45/gal
Average home$12,750$435,000
Average income$6,600$67,500
Minimum wage$1.00$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.68$11.95
Postage stamp$0.04$0.73
Population174.1M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Library of Congress. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.