Russian space agency stated on Monday that Valery Polyakov, the Soviet cosmonaut who established the record for the longest single space mission, has passed away at the age of 80.
Valeri Polyakov cause of death: What happened to Valeri Polyakov?
On January 8, 1994, Polyakov and two other people launched on a two-day voyage to the Soviet space station Mir, beginning his record-breaking 437 days in space.
Before landing on March 22, 1995, he completed more than 7,000 Earth orbits while aboard Mir.
Polyakov refused to exit the Soyuz spacecraft after landing, as is customary to allow for the body’s acclimation to gravity.
After being assisted to exit on his own, he made his way to a neighboring transport vehicle on foot.
In a previous mission in 1988–1989, Polyakov spent 288 days in space.
The reason of death was not disclosed in Roscosmos’ notification.
Medically trained, Polyakov sought to show that the human body could sustain prolonged space travel.
