Dr. Valery Polyakov, a doctor and astronaut who held the world file for consecutive days spent in outer area, 437, has died. He was 80.
Russia’s area company introduced the dying with out specifying when or the place it occurred or the trigger.
Dr. Polyakov took off for the Russian Mir area station on Jan. 8, 1994, and returned to Earth 437 days, 17 hours and 38 minutes later, on March 22, 1995. He had orbited Earth 7,075 occasions and traveled almost 187 million miles, in line with the New Mexico Museum of Area Historical past.
A specialist in area drugs, he had volunteered for the mission to show that the human physique might survive microgravity lengthy sufficient to achieve Mars, Wired journal reported in 2010. He labored out whereas in area and returned wanting “huge and robust” — “like he might wrestle a bear” — Wired quoted the American astronaut Norman Thagard as saying.
Fairly than be carried out of his capsule on his return, Dr. Polyakov walked on his personal power, sat down, stole a cigarette from a pal and started sipping brandy, in line with “The Story of Manned Area Stations: An Introduction,” by Philip Baker.
Dr. Polyakov’s file stays unbeaten. In March, Mark Vande Hei returned to Earth after spending 355 days in area aboard the Worldwide Area Station, the Mir’s successor, a file for an American.
Valery Ivanovich Korshunov was born on April 27, 1942, within the Russian metropolis of Tula, in line with the Museum of Area Historical past. He modified his title after being adopted by his stepfather.
No info on his survivors was obtainable.
He was impressed to specialise in area drugs by Boris Yegorov, the primary doctor to fly in area. Dr. Polyakov developed his experience within the discipline on the Institute of Medical and Organic Issues in Moscow.
In a historical past of the Mir area station, NASA mentioned Dr. Polyakov had “contributed significantly to the biomedical research of long-term human spaceflight.”