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VETERANIn MemoriamROS
VETERANIn MemoriamROSRoscosmos·🇷🇺 Russia·Born 1933
Viktor Patsayev
Test engineer on Soyuz 11 and the first astronomer to operate a telescope in space, aboard Salyut 1.
570h
Hours in Space
1
Missions
0
EVAs
—
EVA Time
Biography
Test engineer on Soyuz 11 and the first astronomer to operate a telescope in space, aboard Salyut 1. He died with his crewmates during the Soyuz 11 reentry in 1971.
Before NASAEngineer at the Korolev Design Bureau after graduating from the Penza Industrial Institute in 1955, where he contributed to the development of the Salyut space station before being selected as a cosmonaut in 1968.
Mission Timeline
- Test Engineer
Soyuz 11
Soyuz 11 / Salyut 1
Launch: Jun 6, 1971Landing: Jun 29, 1971Duration: 23 days- First astronomer to operate a telescope in space (Orion-1)
Beyond the Mission
Languages
Russian
Fun fact
Patsayev became the first human to operate a telescope outside Earth's atmosphere, using the Orion 1 Space Observatory aboard Salyut 1 in 1971 — a milestone that came just days before his death during Soyuz 11's re-entry.
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