Gennadi Manakov, cosmonaut, born 1950

Gennadi Manakov, born June 1, 1950 in the former Soviet Union, went into space twice.

His first mission was aboard Soyuz TM-10 as commander to the space station Mir.  He spent almost 131 days in space, from August to December 1990 before returning to Earth.

His second and final flight was aboard Soyuz TM-16 as commander to Mir.  He spent 179 days in space, from January-July 1993, before returning to Earth. 

He passed away in September 2019.

Happy birthday, cosmonaut Aleksandr Poleshchuk!

Aleksandr Poleshchuk, born October 30, 1953 in the former Soviet Union, went into space aboard Soyuz TM-16, launched in January 1993 to the space station Mir. He was flight engineer and spent over 179 days in space with fellow cosmonaut Gennadi Manakov.  He returned to Earth in July 1993.

Happy birthday, French astronaut Jean-Pierre Haignere!

Jean-Pierre Haignere, born May 19, 1948 in Paris, France, has been in space twice as an astronaut for France's National Centre for Space Studies.

His first flight was aboard Soyuz TM-17 to the space station Mir, launched July 1, 1993.  He returned to Earth July 22 aboard Soyuz TM-16.

His second and final flight was aboard Soyuz TM-29 to Mir in February 1999.  He participated in Mir EO-27 and stayed aboard  for almost 189 days before returning to Earth in August 1999.

Soyuz TM-16 launched 1993

Soyuz TM-16 crew (L-R): Gennadi Manakov, Alexander Poleshchuk

Soyuz TM-16 mission patch

Soyuz TM-16, launched January 24, 1993, was the sixteenth expedition to the space station Mir.  Its crew consisted of  Commander Gennadi Manakov and Alexander Poleshchuk.  They made up the crew of expedition Mir EO-13.  They remained in space for 179 days and returned to Earth in July with Jean-Pierre Haignere, a French astronaut.