Franz Viehböck
Encyclopedia
Franz Artur Viehböck is an Austria
n electrical engineer
, and was Austria's first astronaut
. He visited the Mir
space station in 1991 aboard Soyuz TM-13, returning aboard Soyuz TM-12 after spending just over a week in space.
and the Kazakh
Toktar Aubakirov
in Soyuz TM-13
from the Baikonur Cosmodrome
spaceport
.
At the Mir
space station
he conducted 15 experiments in the fields of space medicine, physics and space technology, together with the cosmonauts Anatoly Artsebarsky
and Sergey Krikalev. Viehböck returned after 7 days and 22 hours with Soyuz TM-12
, and landed in Kazakhstan
on October 10.
The following two years he gave numerous lectures on the mission, then went to the United States
and worked for Rockwell
. When Rockwell was taken over by Boeing
he became Director for International Business Development in Vienna
. Later he was assigned Technologiebeauftragter (technology coordinator) of Lower Austria
.
Viehböck resides in Berndorf, Lower Austria
. He is married, his daughter Carina was born during his space mission. The only other space traveller who became parent while on orbit is Randolph Bresnik (NASA
).
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n electrical engineer
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
, and was Austria's first astronaut
Astronaut
An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....
. He visited the 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...
space station in 1991 aboard Soyuz TM-13, returning aboard Soyuz TM-12 after spending just over a week in space.
Career
Together with Clemens Lothaller, he was selected for the Soviet-Austrian space project Austromir 91. After two years of training he was chosen for the mission, and launched on October 2, 1991 together with the Russian cosmonauts Alexander A. VolkovAlexander Alexandrovich Volkov (cosmonaut)
Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Volkov is a Russian cosmonaut.At the age of 13, Volkov witnessed Yuri Gagarin become the first man in space and this inspired him to become a cosmonaut...
and the Kazakh
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
Toktar Aubakirov
Toktar Aubakirov
Toktar Ongarbayuly Aubakirov is a retired Kazakhstani Air Force officer and a former cosmonaut .-Early life:Toktar Aubakirov was born on July 27, 1946 in Karaganda, Kazakh SSR, which is now Kazakhstan...
in Soyuz TM-13
Soyuz TM-13
-Mission highlights:13th expedition to Mir. Included astronaut from Austria and cosmonaut from soon to be independent Kazakhstan.Soyuz-TM 13 carried Austrian cosmonaut-researcher Franz Viehböck and still Soviet-Kazakh cosmonaut-researcher Toktar Aubakirov. The flight was unusual for carrying no...
from the Baikonur Cosmodrome
Baikonur Cosmodrome
The Baikonur Cosmodrome , also called Tyuratam, is the world's first and largest operational space launch facility. It is located in the desert steppe of Kazakhstan, about east of the Aral Sea, north of the Syr Darya river, near Tyuratam railway station, at 90 meters above sea level...
spaceport
Spaceport
A spaceport or cosmodrome is a site for launching spacecraft, by analogy with seaport for ships or airport for aircraft. The word spaceport, and even more so cosmodrome, has traditionally been used for sites capable of launching spacecraft into orbit around Earth or on interplanetary trajectories...
.
At the 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...
space station
Space station
A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a crew which is designed to remain in space for an extended period of time, and to which other spacecraft can dock. A space station is distinguished from other spacecraft used for human spaceflight by its lack of major propulsion or landing...
he conducted 15 experiments in the fields of space medicine, physics and space technology, together with the cosmonauts Anatoly Artsebarsky
Anatoly Artsebarsky
Anatoly Pavlovich Artsebarsky is a former Soviet cosmonaut.He became a cosmonaut in 1985. Artsebarsky has spent almost 5 months in space on a single spaceflight. In 1991, he flew aboard Soyuz TM-12 and docked with the Mir Space Station. Artsebarsky and Sergei Krikalev stayed aboard Mir while the...
and Sergey Krikalev. Viehböck returned after 7 days and 22 hours with Soyuz TM-12
Soyuz TM-12
-Mission highlights:12th expedition to Mir. Included first Briton in space.The Derbents welcomed aboard Mir Anatoli Artsebarski, Sergei Krikalev , and British cosmonaut-researcher Helen Sharman, who was aboard as part of Project Juno, a cooperative venture partly sponsored by British private...
, and landed in Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
on October 10.
The following two years he gave numerous lectures on the mission, then went to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and worked for Rockwell
Rockwell International
Rockwell International was a major American manufacturing conglomerate in the latter half of the 20th century, involved in aircraft, the space industry, both defense-oriented and commercial electronics, automotive and truck components, printing presses, valves and meters, and industrial automation....
. When Rockwell was taken over by Boeing
Boeing
The Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...
he became Director for International Business Development in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. Later he was assigned Technologiebeauftragter (technology coordinator) of Lower Austria
Lower Austria
Lower Austria is the northeasternmost state of the nine states in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria since 1986 is Sankt Pölten, the most recently designated capital town in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria had formerly been Vienna, even though Vienna is not officially part of Lower Austria...
.
Viehböck resides in Berndorf, Lower Austria
Berndorf, Lower Austria
Berndorf is a town in the district of Baden in Lower Austria in Austria. Because of its historic development in the 19th century it is also referred to as the Krupp town.-Districts:The town consists of 4 districts:* Berndorf-Stadt* St...
. He is married, his daughter Carina was born during his space mission. The only other space traveller who became parent while on orbit is Randolph Bresnik (NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
).