Alexander Poleshchuk
Encyclopedia
Aleksandr Fyodorovich Poleshchuk is a Russia
n cosmonaut.
Born in Cheremkhovo
, Irkutsk region, he graduated from the Moscow Aviation Institute
in 1977 with a mechanical engineering diploma. He then joined RSC Energia as a test engineer, where he was occupied with perfecting repair and assembly techniques performed during space flights. He has extensive experience in test work under simulated weightlessness conditions. In February 1989 he was selected as a test cosmonaut candidate (1989 Cosmonaut Candidates Class, Group 14, Civil Specialists). From September 1989 to January 1991 he underwent the complete course of general space training and was qualified as a test cosmonaut, and then till March 1992 he undertook advanced training for the Soyuz-TM transport vehicle and Mir
station flight.
In 1992 he was selected as the backup flight engineer of the Soyuz TM-15
joint Russian-French mission, and consequently nominated as the flight engineer of the prime crew of Soyuz TM-16
. In space from January 24 to July 22, 1993, he participated in a 179-day space flight with Gennady Manakov. During the flight he performed two EVA
s totaling 9 hours and 58 minutes. Also testing of the androgynous peripheral docking subassembly of the Kristall module was performed.
October 1994 to March 1995 he trained as back-up flight engineer for the Soyuz TM-21
transport vehicle and Mir Station 18th primary expedition flights.
Poleshchuk is married and has one daughter.
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n cosmonaut.
Born in Cheremkhovo
Cheremkhovo
Cheremkhovo is a town in Irkutsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Trans-Siberian Railway. Population: It was founded in 1772. It is one of the coal-mining towns in the Irkutsk coal basin.-References:*Transsib.ru....
, Irkutsk region, he graduated from the Moscow Aviation Institute
Moscow Aviation Institute
Moscow Aviation Institute is one of several major engineering higher education establishments in Moscow .Although the school is currently offering a wide range of majors and research...
in 1977 with a mechanical engineering diploma. He then joined RSC Energia as a test engineer, where he was occupied with perfecting repair and assembly techniques performed during space flights. He has extensive experience in test work under simulated weightlessness conditions. In February 1989 he was selected as a test cosmonaut candidate (1989 Cosmonaut Candidates Class, Group 14, Civil Specialists). From September 1989 to January 1991 he underwent the complete course of general space training and was qualified as a test cosmonaut, and then till March 1992 he undertook advanced training for the Soyuz-TM transport vehicle and Mir
Mir
Mir was a space station operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, at first by the Soviet Union and then by Russia. Assembled in orbit from 1986 to 1996, Mir was the first modular space station and had a greater mass than that of any previous spacecraft, holding the record for the...
station flight.
In 1992 he was selected as the backup flight engineer of the Soyuz TM-15
Soyuz TM-15
-Crew:-Mission highlights:15th expedition to Mir. Included astronaut Michel Tognini from France.Michel Tognini, passenger aboard Soyuz- TM 15, was the third Frenchman to visit a space station. He conducted ten experiments using 300 kg of equipment delivered by Progress-M flights. Tognini spent...
joint Russian-French mission, and consequently nominated as the flight engineer of the prime crew of Soyuz TM-16
Soyuz TM-16
-Crew:-Mission highlights:16th expedition to Mir.First Soyuz without a probe and drogue docking system since 1976. It carriedan APAS-89 androgynous docking unit different from the APAS-75 unit used for ASTP in 1975, yet similar in general principles. Soyuz-TM 16 used it to dock with an androgynous...
. In space from January 24 to July 22, 1993, he participated in a 179-day space flight with Gennady Manakov. During the flight he performed two EVA
Extra-vehicular activity
Extra-vehicular activity is work done by an astronaut away from the Earth, and outside of a spacecraft. The term most commonly applies to an EVA made outside a craft orbiting Earth , but also applies to an EVA made on the surface of the Moon...
s totaling 9 hours and 58 minutes. Also testing of the androgynous peripheral docking subassembly of the Kristall module was performed.
October 1994 to March 1995 he trained as back-up flight engineer for the Soyuz TM-21
Soyuz TM-21
Soyuz TM-21 was Soyuz mission, a human spaceflight mission transporting personnel to the Russian space station Mir. Part of the US/Russian Shuttle-Mir Program, the mission launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome, atop a Soyuz-U2 carrier rocket, at 06:11:34 UTC on March 14, 1995...
transport vehicle and Mir Station 18th primary expedition flights.
Poleshchuk is married and has one daughter.