Soyuz TM-30 Parachute Presentation (Signed by Cmdr Sergei Zalyotin)
 
Large swath of flown orange and white parachute segment from Soyuz TM-30 (Союз ТМ-30 /Union TM-30), signed by Commander Sergei Zaletin (Сергей Залётин) .  
 
This segment was cut from the main chute after landing and was kept as a memento by Commander Zaletin.  The chute spent a total of 81 days exposed to the vacuum of space, 79 of which were spent docked to the MIR space station.


 
This item was launched from earth on 2 April 2000 on Soyuz TM-30, returning to earth on 16 June 2000.  It spent a total of 81 days exposed to the vacuum of space, 79 of which were spent docked to the MIR space station. The parachute segment is signed by Commander Zaletin, and is accompanied by a certificate certifying flown status, signed by both Commander Sergei Zaletin as well as Flight Engineer Aleksandr Kaleri).
 
Expedition 28 (Mir-28/IO-28) was the last resident crew of the MIR Space Station.  They spent 79 days in earth orbit, attempting to reactivate and repair the station in an effort to refurbish and privatize the aging Mir space station, which was nearing the end of its operational life. Further commercially funded missions were originally planned to continue the restoration efforts of the 14-year-old space station, but insufficient funding and investment ultimately led to the de-orbit of the station in early 2001.