Renowned Kazakh cosmonaut Talgat Musabayev has passed away at the age of 74, reports Adyrna.
President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev expressed his condolences to the family of the national hero.
“Talgat Amangeldiyevich flew into space three times and ventured into open space, earning global recognition for his remarkable courage and achievements. He dedicated himself to the development of Kazakhstan’s aerospace industry and made significant contributions. As a senator and public figure, he initiated many important projects. With his professionalism and respectable character, he earned the admiration of the people. His bright image will not be forgotten. May he rest in peace,” read the condolence letter.
Talgat Musabayev was Kazakhstan’s second cosmonaut and the 309th person in the world to travel to space three times. He was born on January 7, 1951, in the village of Kargaly in the Zhambyl district of the Almaty region, to a journalist father and a doctor mother.
His first space mission took place from July 1 to November 4, 1994, lasting 125 days, 22 hours, 53 minutes, and 36 seconds. He went into open space twice during that mission, with a total duration of 11 hours and 7 minutes. During this flight, Kazakhstan’s second scientific experiment program was successfully completed, alongside scientific programs from Russia, the U.S., Germany, and France.
In 1998, from January 29 to August 25, he served as the commander of the Soyuz-TM-27 and Mir spacecraft as part of the 25th main expedition. During this mission, he conducted five spacewalks.
From April 28 to June 6, 2001, he was the commander of the first crewed expedition to the International Space Station aboard Soyuz-TM-32.
Between 2003 and 2005, Musabayev was the team commander at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center. He later served as CEO of the Kazakh-Russian joint venture “Baiterek” from 2005 to 2007, and briefly as the Director of Kazakhstan’s Aerospace Agency in 2007. He also chaired the National Space Agency and the Aerospace Committee under the Ministry of Digital Development, Innovations, and Aerospace Industry.
From 2016 to 2017, he was an advisor to the President of Kazakhstan, and from 2017 to 2023, he served as a member of the Senate of the Parliament of Kazakhstan and a member of the Committee on International Affairs, Defense, and Security.
