Austrian astronaut recalls 1991 Gulf War oil fires from space

VIENNA, Austria — Austrian astronaut Franz Viehböck has said his 1991 spaceflight reshaped his view of Earth, recalling that smoke from oil wells set ablaze during the Gulf War was clearly visible from orbit. In an interview with Novosti news agency, Viehböck said the black and gray smoke drifting over the Gulf region after Iraq's invasion of Kuwait was unmistakable from space. "You see not only the beauty but also the damage humans cause to the planet," he said, noting the fires and resulting haze covered the area following the start of the war. Viehböck flew to the Soviet Mir space station in 1991 alongside Soviet cosmonauts Aleksandr Volkov and Toktar Aubakirov in what is recorded as the first and only space mission by an Austrian citizen. He spent about eight days aboard the station conducting experiments in space medicine, physics and space technology. The 1991 conflict followed Iraq's August 1990 invasion of Kuwait, and retreating Iraqi forces set fire to hundreds of Kuwaiti oil wells, producing widespread pollution that persisted for months. Viehböck's account offers a direct astronaut's perspective on one of the war's most visible environmental consequences.