Valery Korzun

Cosmonaut career

Korzun was selected as a cosmonaut in 1987 after serving as commander of the Gagarin Military Air-Force Academy. He began training in December 1987 and qualified as a Test-Cosmonaut in June 1989. From September 1989 to September 1992 he trained with the test-cosmonauts group, and from October 1992 to March 1994 he underwent extensive training as commander of the Soyuz-TM rescue spacecraft. In August 1996 he completed training as commander for the Mir-22/NASA-3 and Cassiopia programs.

His first spaceflight began on 17 August 1996 aboard Soyuz TM-24 with cosmonaut Alexander Kaleri and Claudie André-Deshays, the first French woman in space. The Soyuz launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome at 13:18:03 UTC and docked with Mir on 19 August at 14:50:23 UTC. Korzun and Kaleri formed the 22nd resident crew, initially with NASA astronaut Shannon Lucid and later with John Blaha and Jerry Linenger. On 2 March 1997, Soyuz TM-24 returned to Earth carrying Korzun, Kaleri, and ESA astronaut Reinhold Ewald, landing 128 km east of Jezkazgan at 06:44 UTC.

Korzun spent 196 days, 17 hours, and 26 minutes on that mission. For his second flight, Korzun launched on 5 June 2002 aboard STS-111 from Kennedy Space Center LC-39A at 21:22:49 UTC. Endeavour docked with the ISS on 7 June 2002 at 16:25 UTC, and Korzun assumed command of Expedition 5. The crew conducted about 25 new investigations and continued earlier science work, studying cold plasma, crystal growth, radiation effects, and the human body.

Medical experiments involved blood, muscles, and bones, and psychological experiments were also performed. Korzun participated in ecological experiments and monitored Earth's surface, with applications including rapid reporting of disasters such as fires and floods.

Did You Know?

• Korzun logged 1473 flight hours as a 1st class military pilot and completed 377 parachute jumps.
• During his first spacewalk on 2 December 1996, he and Aleksandr Kaleri installed MCSA cables to provide more electrical power to Mir.
• His second spacewalk on 9 December 1996 lasted 6 hours and 38 minutes, during which he and Kaleri attached a Kurs docking antenna.
• On 16 August 2002, a spacewalk with Peggy Whitson was cut short to 4 hours 25 minutes after a forgotten oxygen valve caused a two-hour delay.
• Korzun's fourth spacewalk on 26 August 2002 added two ham radio antennas to the Zvezda module for future amateur radio operations.