Editing Valeri Polyakov (section)

== Cosmonaut career ==
[[File:Cosmonaut Polyakov Watches Discovery's Rendezvous With Mir - GPN-2002-000078.jpg|thumb|right|Polyakov observes rendezvous operations with the [[Space Shuttle Discovery|Space Shuttle ''Discovery'']] on its [[STS-63]] mission through a window on the [[Mir Core Module]] in February 1995.]]

Polyakov was selected as a cosmonaut in [[List of astronauts by year of selection#1972|Medical Group 3]] on 22 March 1972. His first flight into space occurred on [[Soyuz TM-6]] in 1988. After staying aboard the Mir space station and conducting research for 240 days, Polyakov returned to Earth aboard [[Soyuz TM-7]]. His first words upon return were "We can fly to Mars."<ref name=nmmuseum/><ref name=rocketstem>{{cite news|last=Hall|first=Loretta|title=SETTING THE RECORD: FOURTEEN MONTHS ABOARD MIR WAS DREAM MISSION FOR POLYAKOV|url=https://www.rocketstem.org/2015/02/09/russian-cosmonaut-valeri-polyakov-spent-record-breaking-14-months-aboard-mir-space-station-in-1990s/|newspaper=rocketstem.org|date=9 February 2015}}</ref>

Polyakov's second spaceflight, the longest human spaceflight in history, began on 8 January 1994 with the launch of the [[Soyuz TM-18]] mission. He spent approximately 437 days aboard Mir, conducting experiments and performing scientific research. During this flight, he completed just over 7,000 orbits of the Earth. On 9 January 1995, after 366 days in space, Polyakov formally broke the spaceflight duration record previously set by [[Vladimir Titov (cosmonaut)|Vladimir Titov]] and [[Musa Manarov]] six years earlier.<ref name=leavingearth>{{cite book|last=Zimmerman|first=Robert|title=Leaving earth: space stations, rival superpowers, and the quest for interplanetary travel|year=2003|publisher=Joseph Henry Press|location=Washington, DC|isbn=978-0-309-08548-9|pages=[https://archive.org/details/leavingearth00robe/page/366 366]–372|url=https://archive.org/details/leavingearth00robe|url-access=registration|quote=valeri polyakov.}}</ref> He returned to Earth aboard [[Soyuz TM-20]] on 22 March 1995.<ref name=nmmuseum/> Upon landing, Polyakov opted not to be carried the few feet between the [[Soyuz-TM|Soyuz capsule]] and a nearby lawn chair, instead walking the short distance. In doing so, he wished to prove that humans could be physically capable of working on the surface of [[Mars]] after a long-duration transit phase.<ref name=wired>{{cite news|last=Madrigal|first=Alexis|title=March 22, 1995: Longest Human Space Adventure Ends|url=https://www.wired.com/2010/03/0322cosmonaut-space-record/|access-date=23 June 2016|newspaper=Wired.com|date=22 March 2010|archive-date=11 June 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160611175330/http://www.wired.com/2010/03/0322cosmonaut-space-record|url-status=live}}</ref>

Polyakov volunteered for his 437-day flight to learn how the human body would respond to the [[Micro-g environment|micro-gravity]] environment on long-duration missions to Mars.<ref name=wired/> Upon returning from his second spaceflight, Polyakov held the record for the most total time in space. Data from Polyakov's flight has been used by researchers to determine that humans are able to maintain a healthy mental state during long-duration spaceflight just as they would on Earth.<ref name="journal">{{cite journal|last1=Manzey|first1=Dietrich |last2=Lorenz|first2=Bernd |last3=Poljakov|first3=Valeri |title=Mental performance in extreme environments: results from a performance monitoring study during a 438-day spaceflight|journal=Ergonomics|date=1 April 1998|volume=41|issue=4|pages=537–559|doi=10.1080/001401398186991|pmid=9557591}}</ref>

Polyakov underwent medical assessments before, during, and after the flight. He also underwent two follow-up examinations six months after returning to Earth. When researchers compared the results of these medical exams, it was revealed that although there were no impairments of [[Jungian cognitive functions|cognitive functions]], Polyakov experienced a clear decline in mood as well as a feeling of increased workload during the first few weeks of spaceflight and return to Earth.<ref name="journal"/><ref name=sy>{{cite web|title=March 22nd, 1995 – 15th Anniversary of Valeri Polyakov's return to Earth|url=http://spaceyuga.com/march-22nd-1995-15th-anniversary-valeri-polyakovs-return-earth/|publisher=Space Yuga|access-date=2 June 2011|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110827170518/http://spaceyuga.com/march-22nd-1995-15th-anniversary-valeri-polyakovs-return-earth/|archive-date=27 August 2011}}</ref> Polyakov's mood stabilized to pre-flight levels between the second and fourteenth month of his mission. It was also revealed that Polyakov did not suffer from any prolonged performance impairments after returning to Earth. In light of these findings, researchers concluded that a stable mood and overall function could be maintained during extended duration spaceflights, such as [[Human mission to Mars|crewed missions to Mars]].<ref name="journal"/>

=== Spaceflights ===
* [[Soyuz TM-6]] / [[Soyuz TM-7]] – 28 August 1988, 04:23:11 UTC<ref name="gcat-r7">{{cite web |last1=McDowell |first1=Jonathan C. |title=Launch List: R-7 |url=https://www.planet4589.org/space/gcat/data/launch/R-7.html |website=General Catalog of Artificial Space Objects |access-date=12 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230609005320/https://planet4589.org/space/gcat/data/launch/R-7.html |archive-date=9 June 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref> to 27 April 1989, 02:57:58 UTC<ref name="esa-aragatz">{{cite web |title=Aragatz |url=https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Human_and_Robotic_Exploration/Aragatz |publisher=[[ESA]] |access-date=12 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221017092015/https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Human_and_Robotic_Exploration/Aragatz |archive-date=17 October 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref> – 241 days, 22 hours, 34 minutes and 47 seconds
* [[Soyuz TM-18]] / [[Soyuz TM-20]] – 8 January 1994, 10:05:34 UTC<ref name="gcat-r7" /> to 22 March 1995, 04:04:05 UTC<ref name="esa-euromir94">{{cite web |title=EUROMIR 94 |url=https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Human_and_Robotic_Exploration/EUROMIR_94 |publisher=[[ESA]] |access-date=12 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230415154006/https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Human_and_Robotic_Exploration/EUROMIR_94 |archive-date=15 April 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref> – 437 days, 17 hours, 58 minutes and 31 seconds