Happy birthday, Cuban cosmonaut Arnaldo Tamayo Mendez!

Arnaldo Tamayo Mendez, born January 29, 1942 in Guantanamo, Cuba, is the first Cuban citizen in space and the first person from a Western Hemisphere country besides the U.S. to travel into space.

He joined the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces wanting to become a pilot.  He received training in aerial comb at in the Soviet Union.  He was selected as a cosmonaut March 1, 1978 with fellow Cuban Jose Lopez Falcon.

Tamayo launched into space aboard Soyuz 38 with Yuri Romanenko, September 18, 1980.  His journey into space lasted almost 8 days.

Celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month - Arnaldo Tamayo-Mendez, first Cuban in space

On the 37th anniversary of his launch aboard Soyuz 38, I celebrate Arnaldo Tamayo-Mendez, first Cuban in space.  So, he was a cosmonaut, not an astronaut but things hadn't been too cozy between Cuba and the U.S.

He was selected to join the Intercosmos program in 1978 and trained for two and a half years with fellow Cuban Jose Lopez Falcon.

On September 18, 1980, Tamayo-Mendez and cosmonaut Yuri Romanenko launched aboard Soyuz 38 and docked with Salyut 6, where they spent a little over a week, conducting scientific experiments.  They returned to Earth September 26.

He is the first person to receive the Hero of the Republic of Cuba.  Tamayo-Mendez also received the Order of Lenin and named Hero of the Soviet Union