Yi So-yeon
Yi So-yeon is a South Korean biotechnologist and astronaut who became the first Korean citizen in space. Her flight was a short-duration visiting mission to the International through the Korean Astronaut Program.
- Born
- June 2, 1978
- Died
- N/A
- Birthplace
- Gwangju,South Korea
Flights
1
Spacewalks
N/A
EVA time
N/A
In space
10 days, 21 hours, 13 minutes
Bio
Yi studied mechanical engineering and biotechnology at KAIST before selection as one of South Korea's astronaut finalists. She was originally backup to Ko San but became the prime spaceflight participant shortly before launch.
Soyuz TMA-12 launched in April 2008 with Sergey Volkov, Oleg Kononenko, and Yi. She spent about ten days in orbit, performed Korean science and education activities, and returned on Soyuz TMA-11 with the previous ISS crew.
Yi later worked in research, education, and public communication after leaving the formal Korean astronaut role. Her mission remains South Korea's only human spaceflight as of the reviewed records.