View source for Mars Rafikov

{{Infobox astronaut
| name          = Mars Zakirovich Rafikov
| image         =
| type          = Cosmonaut
| nationality   = [[Soviet Union|Soviet]]
| birth_date    = {{Birth date|1933|9|29}}
| birth_place   = [[Dzhalal-Abad]], [[Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic]]
| death_date    = {{Death date and age|2000|7|23|1933|9|29}}
| death_place   = [[Almaty]], [[Kazakhstan]]
| occupation    = Jet fighter pilot
| rank          = [[Soviet Air Force]]
| selection     = [[List of astronauts by selection#1960|Air Force Group 1]]
| space_time    =
| missions      =
| insignia      =
}}

'''Mars Zakirovich Rafikov''' ({{lang-ru|Марс Закирович Рафиков}}, 29 September 1933 – 23 July 2000) was a Soviet [[cosmonaut]] who was dismissed from the [[Soviet space program]] for disciplinary reasons.

Senior Lieutenant Rafikov, age 26, was selected as one of the [[List of astronauts by selection#1960|original 20 cosmonauts]] on March 7, 1960 along with [[Yuri Gagarin]].

On March 24, 1962, Rafikov was dismissed from the cosmonaut corps, officially for "a variety of offenses, including womanizing and 'gallivanting' in Moscow restaurants, and so forth".<ref>Asif Siddiqi, "Sputnik and the Soviet Space Challenge", 2000, p. 374</ref>  Other cosmonauts (notably Gagarin) had exhibited similar behavior, but could not be officially disciplined because of their stature and international reputation.  Gherman Titov later suggested, though, that the real reason for his dismissal was because he and his wife had divorced.<ref>http://www.cdi.org/russia/johnson/3264.html#4</ref>

He remained in the military, serving as a pilot in the Afghanistan war.<ref>http://www.spacefacts.de/bios/cosmonauts/english/rafikov_mars.htm</ref>

To protect the image of the space program, efforts were made to cover up the reason for Rafikov's dismissal.  His image, like that of others who were dismissed, was [[Censorship of images in the Soviet Union|airbrushed out]] of cosmonaut photos. This airbrushing led to speculation about "[[lost cosmonauts]]" even though the actual reasons were often mundane.<ref>http://www.straightdope.com/columns/030117.html</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.vectorsite.net/tamrc_12.html Details of the Soviet training program and launch]
* [http://www.astronautix.com/astros/rafikov.htm Biographical details]
* [http://www.cdi.org/russia/johnson/3264.html#4 Titov recounts about disappearing cosmonauts]
* [http://www.straightdope.com/columns/030117.html Straight Dope entry about lost cosmonauts]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rafikov, Mars Zakirovich}}
[[Category:1933 births]]
[[Category:2000 deaths]]
[[Category:Soviet cosmonauts]]
[[Category:Soviet Air Force officers]]
[[Category:Soviet military personnel of the Soviet–Afghan War]]


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