Russian Space Agency Head Threatens to Abandon Astronaut and St. John’s University Grad on ISS

Mar 14, 2022 | 11:28 AM

NASA/Joel Kowsky

(KNSI) — A St. John’s University grad on the International Space Station may not have a ride home later this month.

Mark Vande Hei, who graduated from SJU in 1989, blasted off from the Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan last April. He is set to return to earth after setting a record for most days in space on March 30th, but the head of the Russian Space Agency Dmitri Rogozin, said due to the U.S.’s tightening restrictions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, he is threatening to leave Vande Hei behind and detach Russia’s portion of the ISS altogether.

NASA hasn’t publicly commented on the situation.

Once he returns to earth, Vande Hei will be in space for 353 days, beating the old record of 340 days set by astronaut Mark Kelly.

Team-Signature-1050x150

U.S. Border Patrol chief Michael Banks is resigning, in latest DHS leadership change

The head of U.S. Border Patrol has announced his resignation. Michael Banks' decision is the latest leadership shake-up of officials implementing President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown.

FBI offers $200,000 reward to catch ex-Air Force specialist wanted on espionage charges in Iran

The FBI is offering a $200,000 reward for information leading to the capture of a former U.S. Air Force counterintelligence specialist who defected to Iran in 2013

Strike deadline nears for New York-area train system with 250,000 daily commuters

A New York-area train system with 250,000 daily commuters is facing a shutdown if it cannot reach a deal with unionized workers to avert a strike

Bauhaus Brew Labs in northeast Minneapolis set to close next month

After more than a decade in northeast Minneapolis, Bauhaus Brew Labs says it'll close at the end of June, citing financial headwinds.