Toyohiro Akiyama, first Japanese citizen and journalist in space, dies at 84

Toyohiro Akiyama, the first Japanese citizen to launch into space, has died at the age of 84. He was also recognized as the first commercially sponsored cosmonaut and the world's first journalist to file reports from space. Akiyama died on August 26 due to lower gastrointestinal bleeding, according to news agencies in Japan. A funeral service was held with close relatives present. As a correspondent for the Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS), Akiyama was selected from 162 applicants to participate in a spaceflight to commemorate the network's 40th anniversary. He underwent training at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, near Moscow, and was assigned to the Soyuz TM-11 crew.