Cosmonaut Aleksandr Samokutyaev, 56, is first former ISS crew member to die
Summary
Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Samokutyaev, who flew twice to the International Space Station (ISS) and participated in the last US space shuttle mission in 2011, has died at age 56. He is the first former ISS long-duration crew member to pass away since the space station began hosting crews 26 years ago.Key Facts
- Aleksandr Samokutyaev was a Russian cosmonaut who joined the cosmonaut group in 2003.
- He flew to the ISS twice, first in 2011 and again in 2014.
- In April 2011, he commanded Soyuz TMA-21, which flew with two other crew members, including a NASA astronaut.
- Samokutyaev took part in the final US space shuttle mission (STS-135) when shuttle Atlantis visited the ISS.
- He performed two spacewalks, spending a total of 10 hours outside the ISS.
- During his missions, he worked with astronauts and cosmonauts from Russia, NASA, ESA, and Japan.
- His cause of death has not been announced.
- Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, expressed condolences to his family.
Read the Full Article
This is a fact-based summary from The Actual News. Click below to read the complete story directly from the original source.