Yi So-yeon | |
|---|---|
| 이소연 | |
.jpg) | |
| Born | (1978-06-02)June 2, 1978 (age 47) Kwangju, South Korea |
| Occupation | Researcher |
| Space career | |
| KAP astronaut | |
Time in space | 10 days, 21 hours, 13 minutes |
| Selection | 2006 South Korean program |
| Missions | Soyuz TMA-12/TMA-11 |
| Website | https://instagram.com/astro_yisoyeon |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 이소연 |
|---|---|
| Hanja | 李素妍 |
| RR | I Soyeon |
| MR | I Soyŏn |
| IPA | [iso.jʌn] |
Yi So-yeon (born June 2, 1978) is a South Koreanastronaut andbiotechnologist who became the first South Korean citizen to fly in space.[1]
Lee was born and raised inGwangju,South Korea and graduated fromKAIST with a Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering. In 2006, she was selected as one of two finalists in theKorean Astronaut Program: a mission to send the first Koreans to space. A year later, it was announced that she was to be the backup. However, on March 10, 2008, it was announced that she would be the primary. On April 8, 2008, she was launched into space alongside two Russian cosmonauts. She spent around eleven days in space; on April 19, she returned to the surface.
Afterwards, Yi worked as a researcher at theKorea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI). She then attended theInternational Space University before resigning from KARI to pursue an MBA at theUniversity of California, BerkeleyHaas School of Business. She then moved toWashington and lectured atEverett Community College and theUniversity of Washington.
Yi So-yeon's father is Yi Gil-soo and mother Jeong Geum-soon, and she was raised inGwangju,South Korea.[2]
Yi studied atGwangju Science High School. She earned bachelor's and master's degrees with a focus on mechanics atKAIST inDaejeon. Her doctorate in biotech systems was conferred on February 29, 2008, in a ceremony at KAIST though she could not attend due to her training commitments in Russia. In 2010, she started an MBA program at theHaas School of Business at theUniversity of California, Berkeley[3] In 2015 she taught engineering physics at Everett Community College in Washington State.[4]
Yi was one of the two finalists chosen on December 25, 2006 through theKorean Astronaut Program. On September 5, 2007, theKorean Ministry of Science and Technology selectedKo San as the primary astronaut, and Yi So-yeon as backup, following performance and othertests during their training in Russia.[5][6]
A change was made on March 7, 2008, when Yi was selected to train with the primary crew, and confirmed on March 10 the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology announced that Yi would replace Ko. This was after theRussian Federal Space Agency asked for a replacement, because Ko violated regulations several times at a Russian training center by removing sensitive reading materials and mailing one back to Korea.[7][8][9][10] On April 8, 2008, Yi was launched into space on boardSoyuz TMA-12 with two Russian cosmonauts. South Korea is reported to have paid Russia $20 million for Yi's space flight.[11] She is the third woman, afterHelen Sharman of the United Kingdom andAnousheh Ansari anIranian American, to be the first national from their country in space.
Flying as a guest of the Russian government through a commercial agreement with South Korea, Yi's role aboard Soyuz and the ISS is referred to as aspaceflight participant(Russian:uchastnik kosmicheskovo poleta) inRussian Federal Space Agency andNASA documents and press briefings.[12]
During her mission, Yi So-yeon carried out eighteen science experiments forKARI and conducted interviews and discussions with media. In particular, she took with her 1,000 fruit flies in a special air-conditioned container box (Konkuk University experiment).[13] She monitored the way the changes in gravity and other environmental conditions alter the behaviour of the flies, or their genome. Other experiments involved the growth of plants in space, the study of the behaviour of her heart, and the effects of gravity change on the pressure in her eye and shape of her face. With a specially designed three-dimensionalSamsung camera, Yi took six shots of her face every day to see how it swells in the different gravity. She also observed the Earth, and in particular the movement of dust storms from China to Korea.[14] She also measured the noise levels on board the ISS.[15]
.jpg)
South Korean scientists created a special low-calorie and vitamin-rich version ofkimchi for Yi.[16]
At the end of the mission, Yi returned to Earth along with ISS crew membersPeggy Whitson andYuri Malenchenko aboard Soyuz TMA-11, on April 19, 2008. Due to a malfunction with the Soyuz vehicle, the craft followed a ballistic re-entry which subjects the crew to severe gravitational forces up to 10 times the amount experienced on Earth. As a result of the re-entry, the TMA-11 craft used in the return flight landed 420 kilometres (260 mi) off-course from its target inKazakhstan. All three survived, although requiring observation by medical personnel.[17] Yi was hospitalized after her return to Korea due to severe back pains.[18]
After her flight, Yi worked as a researcher at KARI and as Korea's space ambassador withKo San. She will receive income from future TV commercials.[19] On October 4, 2008, Yi launched theInternational Institute of Space Commerce at a ceremony held in Douglas,Isle of Man.[20]
In 2009, Yi became the first astronaut to attend theInternational Space University (ISU) Space Studies Program (SSP) atNASA Ames Research Center, held in conjunction with the inaugural class of theSingularity University (SU) Graduate Studies Program (GSP).[citation needed]
Based on her track record so early on in her career, Yi was listed as one of the Fifteen Asian Scientists To Watch byAsian Scientist Magazine in May 2011.[21]
On August 13, 2014, theKorean Aerospace Research Institute announced Yi's resignation for personal reasons, ending the country's space program. In an interview, she said she resigned to study for an MBA.[22]
After receiving her MBA from theUniversity of California, BerkeleyHaas School of Business, Yi joined the Association of Spaceflight Professionals.[23] She has lived inWashington,United States. Beginning in 2016, she taught physics at theEverett Community College inWashington,United States. She has also lectured at theUniversity of Washington.[24] In 2021 she was selected as a Karman Fellow for her work in space.[25]
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
