Nov 28

Space Rocket History #40 – The First Woman in Space, Vostok 5 & 6 with Bykovsky and Tereshkova – Part 2

Vostok 5’s orbit turned out to be lower than the expected 181 by 235 km. The actual orbit was 175 by 222 km.  Initial calculations indicated the orbit of Vostok 5 would not decay for 10 or 11 days, however more conservative estimates, taking into account the increased solar activity and the resulting expanding of the upper atmosphere showed that the orbit could decay after only 8 days. With no way of predicting where Vostok 5 might land, the planned eight-day mission was now in question…

Tereshkova

Tereshkova

Tereshkova

Tereshkova

Tereshkova on TV

Tereshkova on TV

Nov 21

Space Rocket History #39 – The First Woman in Space, Vostok 5 & 6 with Bykovsky and Tereshkova – Part 1

In June of 1963, the Soviet Union performed an encore of the Vostok 3 and 4 missions with two manned spaceships orbiting the Earth simultaneously. However, Vostok 5 and 6 was more than a simple repetition.  Vostok 5’s objective was to beat the flight-duration record. But Vostok-6 would carrying the first woman into space.  The 26 year old Valentina Tereshkova….

Mission Patch

Mission Patch

Valeri Vkovsky

Valery Bykovsky

Valentina Tereshkova

Valentina Tereshkova