Muhammed Faris
A Syrian Air Force pilot who broke the atmosphere's grip, becoming a national hero as the first Syrian and second Arab to journey into space.
1951–2024 (age 73)·Syrian military aviator and cosmonaut·Birthday: May 26·Baby Boomers
Biography
Muhammed Ahmed Faris carried the hopes of the Arab world into orbit. A skilled pilot in the Syrian Air Force, he was selected in 1985 for the Interkosmos program, a Soviet initiative that opened spaceflight to allied nations. His training in Star City, Russia, was intense, a total immersion in a language and technology far removed from his home in Aleppo. In July 1987, he strapped into the Soyuz TM-3 spacecraft, his journey making him a pioneer overnight. During his week aboard the Mir space station, he conducted scientific experiments focused on Earth observation of Syria, viewing his homeland from a perspective few could imagine. Returning to Earth a hero, his later life was marked by the tragic Syrian civil war, which led him to defect and live in exile in Turkey, a complex postscript for a man who once unified his country in wonder.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Muhammed was born in 1951, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Muhammed Was Born
The biggest hits of 1951
#1 Movie
Quo Vadis
Best Picture
An American in Paris
#1 TV Show
Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts
Muhammed's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1951Born
First color TV broadcast in the US
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Too Young" — Nat King ColeBest Picture: An American in Paris
1956Started school
Elvis Presley appears on The Ed Sullivan Show
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $10,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Heartbreak Hotel" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: Around the World in 80 Days
1964Became a teenager
Civil Rights Act signed; Beatles arrive in America
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $13,450Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"I Want to Hold Your Hand" — The BeatlesBest Picture: My Fair Lady
1967Could drive
Summer of Love in San Francisco; first Super Bowl
Gas: $0.33/galHome: $14,250Min wage: $1.40/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"To Sir, with Love" — LuluBest Picture: In the Heat of the Night
1969Could vote
Apollo 11: humans walk on the Moon; Woodstock festival
Gas: $0.35/galHome: $15,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Sugar, Sugar" — The ArchiesBest Picture: Midnight Cowboy
1972Turned 21
Watergate break-in; last Apollo Moon mission
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $19,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" — Roberta FlackBest Picture: The Godfather
1981Turned 30
MTV launches; first Space Shuttle flight; AIDS identified
Gas: $1.31/galHome: $52,300Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Bette Davis Eyes" — Kim CarnesBest Picture: Chariots of Fire
1991Turned 40
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
2001Turned 50
September 11 attacks transform the world
Gas: $1.46/galHome: $126,400Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Hanging by a Moment" — LifehouseBest Picture: A Beautiful Mind
2011Turned 60
Osama bin Laden killed; Arab Spring sweeps the Middle East
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $138,400Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Rolling in the Deep" — AdeleBest Picture: The Artist
2021Turned 70
January 6 Capitol breach; COVID vaccines roll out globally
Gas: $3.01/galHome: $298,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Levitating" — Dua LipaBest Picture: CODA
2024Died at 73
AI reshapes industries; Paris Olympics
Gas: $3.31/galHome: $372,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Espresso" — Sabrina CarpenterBest Picture: Anora
Key Achievements
- Became the first Syrian citizen and the second Arab to travel to space in 1987 aboard the Soyuz TM-3 mission.
- Spent 7 days, 23 hours, and 5 minutes conducting scientific experiments on the Mir space station.
- Served as a backup cosmonaut for the Soviet-Vietnamese Interkosmos mission in 1980.
Did You Know?
He was a Colonel in the Syrian Air Force before his spaceflight.
He defected from Syria to Turkey in 2012 following the outbreak of the Syrian civil war.
One of his experiments on Mir involved using a Syrian-made photometer to study Earth's atmosphere.
“From the cockpit of a MiG-21 to the Soyuz, I saw the curvature of the Earth against the black.”
