Record-breaking U.S. astronaut and crew back on Earth

FILE PHOTO - The International Space Station (ISS) crew member, astronaut Peggy Whitson of the U.S. speaks prior to the launch of Soyuz MS-3 space ship at Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, November 17, 2016. REUTERS/Dmitri Lovetsky/Pool/File Photo

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla (Reuters) - NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson and two crewmates made a parachute touchdown in Kazakhstan on Saturday, capping a career-total 665 days in orbit, a U.S. record.

Whitson, 57, ended an extended stay of more than nine months aboard the International Space Station, a $100 billion research laboratory that flies about 250 miles (400 km) above Earth.

Member of the International Space Station (ISS) crew Peggy Annette Whitson of the U.S. reacts shortly after the landing of the Soyuz MS-04 capsule in a remote area outside the town of Dzhezkazgan (Zhezkazgan), Kazakhstan September 3, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool

"I feel great,” the biochemist said during an inflight interview on Monday. “I love working up here. It’s one of the most gratifying jobs I’ve ever had.”

During her third mission aboard the station, Whitson spent much of her time on experiments, including studies of cancerous lung tissue and bone cells. She also completed four spacewalks, adding to her six previous outings, to set a record for the most time spent spacewalking by a woman.

Two crewmates who launched with Whitson in November returned to Earth three months ago. She stayed aboard to fill a vacancy after Russia scaled down its station staff from three to two cosmonauts.

Members of the International Space Station (ISS) crew Peggy Annette Whitson of the U.S. (L), Fyodor Yurchikhin of Russia (C), and Jack Fischer of the U.S. rest shortly after the landing of the Soyuz MS-04 capsule in a remote area outside the town of Dzhezkazgan (Zhezkazgan), Kazakhstan September 3, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool

Whitson returned to Earth with Jack Fischer, also with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and Russian cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin, who had been aboard the station since June.

The crew’s Russian Soyuz capsule touched down in Kazakhstan at 9:21 p.m. EDT Saturday.

"I’m looking forward to seeing friends and family,” Whitson said during another interview.

Ground personnel carry member of the International Space Station (ISS) crew Peggy Annette Whitson of the U.S. after the landing of the Soyuz MS-04 capsule in a remote area outside the town of Dzhezkazgan (Zhezkazgan), Kazakhstan September 3, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool

“But the thing I’ve been thinking about the most, kind of been fantasizing about a little bit, are foods that I want to make, vegetables that I want to sauté, things that I’ve missed up here.”

In April, Whitson broke the 534-day U.S. record for cumulative time in space. Only seven Russian men have logged more time, including Gennady Padalka, the world record-holder with 878 days in orbit.

Whitson, who grew up on a farm in Iowa, said she was inspired by the U.S. Apollo program that landed men on the moon, but it was not until later, when the first women become astronauts, that she set her sights on joining them.

Member of the International Space Station (ISS) crew Fyodor Yurchikhin of Russia gets medical treatment shortly after the landing of the Soyuz MS-04 capsule in a remote area outside the town of Dzhezkazgan (Zhezkazgan), Kazakhstan September 3, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool

Whitson, who became an astronaut in 1996, was the first woman to command the space station and also the first woman and first non-pilot to serve as chief of the NASA Astronaut Corps.

“I am working on paying forward some of the advice and mentoring that I received on my journey, in hopes that one day those young people will do the same and look back on a life in which they leapt at the opportunities and broke their own records," she said.

Member of the International Space Station (ISS) crew Jack Fischer of the U.S. is assisted by ground personnel shortly after the landing of the Soyuz MS-04 capsule in a remote area outside the town of Dzhezkazgan (Zhezkazgan), Kazakhstan September 3, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool

(Reporting by Irene Klotz; Editing by Bill Trott)

Ground personnel help International Space Station (ISS) crew member Fyodor Yurchikhin of Russia to get out of a capsule after landing in a remote area outside the town of Dzhezkazgan (Zhezkazgan), Kazakhstan September 3, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool

Ground personnel carry out International Space Station (ISS) crew member Peggy Annette Whitson of the U.S. from the Soyuz MS-04 capsule after landing in a remote area outside the town of Dzhezkazgan (Zhezkazgan), Kazakhstan September 3, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool

Search and rescue team open the hatch of the Soyuz MS-04 capsule carrying the International Space Station (ISS) crew of Jack Fischer, Peggy Annette Whitson of the U.S. and Fyodor Yurchikhin of Russia after its landing near the town of Dzhezkazgan (Zhezkazgan), Kazakhstan September 3, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool

Search and rescue team approaches the Soyuz MS-04 capsule carrying the International Space Station (ISS) crew of Jack Fischer, Peggy Annette Whitson of the U.S. and Fyodor Yurchikhin of Russia after its landing near the town of Dzhezkazgan (Zhezkazgan), Kazakhstan September 3, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool

The Soyuz MS-04 capsule carrying the International Space Station (ISS) crew of Jack Fischer, Peggy Annette Whitson of the U.S. and Fyodor Yurchikhin of Russia lands in a remote area outside the town of Dzhezkazgan (Zhezkazgan), Kazakhstan September 3, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool

The Soyuz MS-04 capsule carrying the International Space Station (ISS) crew of Jack Fischer, Peggy Annette Whitson of the U.S. and Fyodor Yurchikhin of Russia descends beneath a parachute just before landing in a remote area outside the town of Dzhezkazgan (Zhezkazgan), Kazakhstan September 3, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Ilnitsky/Pool

NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson is seen during a spacewalk during Expedition 50 aboard the International Space Station. NASA/Handout via REUTERS

FILE PHOTO - From the International Space Station, Commander Peggy Whitson and Flight Engineer Jack Fischer of NASA speak via video conference to U.S. President Donald Trump at Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S., April 24, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque