Leonid Ivanovich Popov (, ; born August 31, 1945) is a former

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

cosmonaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...

Biography

Popov was born in Oleksandriia,

Kirovohrad Oblast Kirovohrad Oblast (), also known as Kirovohradshchyna (), is an administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast (''province'') in central Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Kropyvnytskyi. The oblast's population is It is ...

Ukrainian SSR The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as the Ukrainian SSR, UkrSSR, and also known as Soviet Ukraine or just Ukraine, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1991. ...

. He was selected as a cosmonaut on April 27, 1970, and flew as Commander on Soyuz 35,

Soyuz 40 The Soyuz 40 mission was a 1981 Soviet Union, Soviet human spaceflight, crewed spaceflight and the final flight of the Soyuz 7K-T spacecraft. It was a collaboration between the Soviet Union and Romania. Crew Backup crew Mission parameters *M ...

and Soyuz T-7, logging 200 days, 14 hours, and 45 minutes in space before his retirement on June 13, 1987. Popov is married and has two children. Olexandriya - Popov

He was awarded: *Twice

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union () was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society. The title was awarded both ...

; *Three Orders of Lenin; *

Medal "For Merit in Space Exploration" The Medal "For Merit in Space Exploration" () is a state decoration of the Russian Federation aimed at recognising achievements in the space program. It was established by Decree of the President of Russia, presidential decree №1099 of September ...

(Russian Federation); *

Pilot-Cosmonaut of the USSR The honorary title Pilot-Cosmonaut of the USSR () was a state award of the Soviet Union presented to all cosmonauts who flew for the Soviet Space Agency. Usually accompanying the distinction was the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, the hi ...

; *Honoured Master of Sport. Foreign awards: * Hero of the Socialist Republic of Romania; * Hero of the Republic of Cuba *Hero of Socialist Labour (Vietnam); *Order of Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam). In September 2023, as part of the national campaigns of decommunization and derusification, in

Kropyvnytskyi Kropyvnytskyi (, ) is a city in central Ukraine, situated on the Inhul, Inhul River. It serves as the administrative center of Kirovohrad Oblast. Population: Over its history, Kropyvnytskyi has changed its name several times. The settlement ...

(the regional capital of Kirovohrad Oblast) the Cosmonaut Popov Street was renamed to .

References

1945 births Living people People from Oleksandriia Soviet cosmonauts Heroes of the Soviet Union Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union alumni Soviet Air Force generals Soviet major generals Recipients of the Order of Ho Chi Minh Salyut program cosmonauts {{hero-USSR-stub