Valentina Tereshkova turns another year older today. She became the first woman in space on 16 June 1963 aboard Vostok 6. Her call sign was чайка(chaika), seagull.
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LOVE THIS!!Top:
Valentina Tereshkova orbited the Earth 48 times during her three day spaceflight in Vostok 6 in 1963. First woman in space!
Bottom:
Svetlana Savitskaya became the second woman in space when she flew the Soyuz T-7 to the Salyut 7 space station in 1984. First woman to perform a spacewalk!
Soviet women astronauts, by comic book artist Philip Bond. (Click the link for portraits of women astronauts from the US as well.)
Today, June 16, The Shenzhou-9 spacecraft had a successful lift off, bringing the first Chinese female astronaut into space. Liu Yang became the 56th woman in space exactly 49 years after the first women, Valentina Tereshkova was launched in the Vostok-6.
My congratulations to China and a big Hurray for 49 years of women in space.
Portrait of Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, by Philip Bond
Before launch of Soyuz-9, 1970.
(Source: enigmaland)
