Sigmund Jähn
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| Intercosmos Cosmonaut | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | German |
| Born | February 13, 1937 Saxony, Germany |
| Occupation1 | Pilot |
| Rank | Major General, East German Air Force |
| Space time | 7d 20h 49m |
| Selection | 1976 Intercosmos Group |
| Mission(s) | Soyuz 31 |
| 1 previous or current | |
Sigmund Werner Paul Jähn (born February 13, 1937) was the first German cosmonaut.
He was born in Morgenröthe-Rautenkranz, Vogtland, Germany. From 1943 to 1951 he attended school in his hometown, and after school trained as a printer. In 1955 he joined the East German air force (the Luftstreitkräfte der NVA) where he became a pilot and military scientist. From 1966-1970 he studied at the Gagarin Military Air Academy in Monino, in the Soviet Union, and afterwards worked in the administration of the East German air force, responsible for pilot education and flight safety.
In 1976 he was selected together with his later backup Eberhard Köllner to train as the first cosmonaut in the Intercosmos program. He trained in Star City near Moscow for the next two years, and finally flew on board Soyuz 31 to the Soviet space station Salyut 6, and returned with Soyuz 29. For this flight, he was celebrated as the first German cosmonaut, which is remarkable as in those days, both East and West Germany normally stressed that people who achieved similar deeds were citizens of their respective states. He spent 7 days, 20 hours, and 49 minutes in space.
In 1983 he received a doctorate in physics at the "Zentralinstitut für Physik der Erde" in Potsdam, specialising in remote sensing of the earth.
Starting in 1990, (after reunification) he worked as a freelance consultant for the (formerly West) German spaceflight agency DLR, and from 1993 also for the ESA to prepare for the Euromir missions. In 2002 he finally retired from this job.
Sigmund Jähn is married and has two children. He enjoys reading and hunting.
A fictionalized version of Jähn, played by Swiss actor Stefan Walz, appears as a taxi driver in the 2003 film Good Bye Lenin!.
Asteroid 17737 was named Sigmund Jähn in 2001.
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