How does space travel affect the human body? Gagarin's space flight: what you should know about one of the main events of the 20th century
The legendary first manned flight into space, carried out on April 12, 1961, is a great event not only for the USSR and its successor Russia, but for the whole world. In this round of the space race, the USSR unconditionally won over its main competitor, the United States. But how was the preparation and the flight itself carried out? and What happened after Gagarin flew over our land and landed back? All this, of course, still arouses the interest of many people.
How was the preparation
Leading Soviet specialists prepared very carefully for sending a man into space. Applicants for the role of the first cosmonaut (initially there were 20 of them) were not the best aces, but there was no need for this - they were selected according to other parameters. Korolev, the chief designer of the Vostok-1 satellite and a pioneer of practical astronautics, needed a pilot up to thirty years old, weighing up to seventy-two kilograms and up to one hundred and seventy centimeters tall, with excellent psychophysical health.
Such requirements were dictated by the complexity of space flights and the design of the cabin of the Vostok-1 module - only one person with certain data was placed in it. Plus, it was necessary that the astronaut was a real communist, and not non-partisan.
When designing the Vostok, several simple but very effective solutions were invented, which were later used on other space rockets. It was not possible to do some things on time, and, for example, for this reason, it was decided not to insert an emergency rescue system here at launch. On top of that, the second braking system, duplicating the first, was removed from the design of the ship already under construction. The refusal of it was justified by the fact that Vostok-1, having entered a not too high orbit (up to 200 kilometers), would still fly off it within ten days due to braking on the upper atmospheric layers and return back to our planet . And the life support systems on the satellite ship were also enough for a maximum of ten days.
Sergei Korolev wanted to launch his apparatus into outer space as soon as possible, because there was information that the States were planning to implement something similar in the second half of April 1961. First, 6 out of 20 applicants were chosen, and the final decision on who exactly should fly was made at one of the meetings of the state commission - the candidacy of Yuri Gagarin was approved (German Titov was appointed as an understudy). And April 12 was chosen as the date for the launch of Vostok-1.
Biography of Gagarin before the day of the flight
Yuri Alekseevich Gagarin was born on March 9, 1934 in an ordinary family of workers. He spent most of his childhood in the town of Gzhatsk (now this city in the Smolensk region is called Gagarin) and neighboring villages, he survived the fascist occupation as a little boy. In October 1955, Gagarin was drafted into the armed forces and sent to Chkalov (this city is now called Orenburg) to the local aviation school. Gagarin studied with the pilot Yadkar Akbulatov, who at that time was considered one of the best specialists in his field.
In his studies, Yuri in all subjects had very high marks and he was even appointed assistant platoon commander. But at the same time, he could not master the landing to perfection - the nose of the plane leaned down a little all the time. At one point, because of this, it was even decided to expel him. But Gagarin begged to give him another chance, said that he could not imagine his life without the sky. As a result, he managed to make a perfect landing. In October 1957, the document on graduation from the school was nevertheless issued to Yuri Gagarin.
Then he served for two years in a fighter regiment near Murmansk. And at the end of 1959, he was included in the list of candidates for astronauts and asked to come to the capital for a medical examination. By this time he had the rank of "starley" (senior lieutenant).
The launch success rate was not 100%
The fact of the launch of Vostok-1 was not covered in advance - the authorities sought to ensure secrecy. In general, many had doubts about the success of this flight - many facts speak of this. For example, it is known that on the eve of the flight, Gagarin wrote a touching farewell letter to his wife and children. But since he was still able to return back to Earth, that day the letter was not shown to the addressees. Only after the death of the astronaut in 1968, he was handed over to his wife.
And TASS (the main news agency of the Soviet Union) prepared in advance, even before April 12, three different reports about this flight: in case of its successful completion, in case of searching for an astronaut abroad, and in case of a fatal accident.
One cannot discount the fact that before the April flight of Vostok-1, six test launches had already been made and three of them ended in tragedies. On May 15, 1960, the satellite ship, which was launched into orbit, could not descend to earth due to problems in the orientation system - it flies around our planet even now. In September 1960, immediately during takeoff, a rocket exploded, there were two dogs on board. The launch on December 1 started off well: the dogs Pcholka and Mushka climbed into orbit as planned. But the descent trajectory at the end of the flight turned out to be wrong - the ship with the animals inside it exploded and completely burned out.
Legendary flight: 108 minutes that changed history
Vostok-1, piloted by Yuri Gagarin, launched from Baikonur on April 12, 1961 at 09:07 (Moscow time). The head of the launch was rocket engineer Anatoly Kirillov - he gave commands for the stages of the rocket launch and supervised their implementation, monitoring the situation from the command cabin.
As soon as the launch vehicle began to rise, Gagarin said that very famous word: "Let's go!". In general, the launch vehicle performed its functions without any problems. Only at the final stage did not work the system responsible for turning off the engines of the third stage. The engines turned off only after the back-up mechanism worked. By this time, the satellite ship was already a hundred kilometers above the planned orbit.
Gagarin, while in orbit, talked about his own observations. Through the porthole he looked at the Earth with its clouds, mountains, oceans and rivers, saw the clouds and the atmosphere from the blackness of space, the Sun and distant stars. He liked the view of our planet that opened to him. He even urged people to preserve this beauty, and not to destroy it. Gagarin was most impressed by the horizon - it separated the globe from a very black sky.
Gagarin also conducted several experiments: he ate, drank water, made a couple of notes with a simple pencil. At some point, he let go of the pencil, and it immediately began to float away from him. Gagarin came to the conclusion that such things in weightlessness should be recorded.
Before the flight, it remained a mystery how the human psyche can react to the conditions of space, so a special protection against the pilot's insanity was implemented inside the ship. To control the ship, Gagarin had to switch to manual control. And for this, he needed to open an envelope with one piece of paper, on which a mathematical problem was written. Only by solving it, it was possible to find out the access code to the control panel.
In general, the flight went smoothly, there were no serious emergency situations. The duration of this flight was 108 minutes, during which time the satellite made one single revolution around the globe.
But when returning to Earth, during landing, the braking system failed a little and there was a slight deviation from the course.
At an altitude of seven kilometers, in full accordance with the plan, Gagarin ejected, after which the module and the cosmonaut in a spacesuit began to descend on two different parachutes (this method of landing was used, by the way, in the other five Vostok rockets). By adjusting the parachute straps, the cosmonaut was able to avoid falling into the cool waters of the Volga and landed on the shore. Thus ended this space flight.
After the flight
After landing, Gagarin was accidentally met by the forester's wife and her granddaughter - they were just walking in these places. Then the military appeared in the landing area - they delivered the pilot-cosmonaut to the military unit. Here he got in touch with the command and reported that the task assigned to him was completed.
As soon as Khrushchev became aware of this, he called Defense Minister Malinovsky. During the conversation, Khrushchev asked that Gagarin be promoted to the rank of major as soon as possible. And by the way, in the TASS reports of April 12, Major Yuri Gagarin already appeared. But the astronaut himself learned about his new rank only after landing. And a little later he was awarded the title of "Hero of the Soviet Union."
Initially, no festivities associated with the appearance of Gagarin in Moscow were planned. But suddenly plans changed, a solemn meeting was organized in a hurry. On an Il-18 plane, the cosmonaut arrived at the capital's Vnukovo airport, where an enthusiastic crowd, media representatives, and top officials of the Soviet state were already waiting for him. Then Gagarin was driven along the main streets of Moscow in an open-top ZIL car. Gagarin rode standing and greeted those who came to meet him. Congratulations sounded from all sides, many brought posters with them. Some man even made his way through the exposed cordon and handed flowers to Gagarin.
Then, on Red Square, the cosmonaut, having walked along the red carpet, reported on the successful flight to Nikita Khrushchev. Some people who watched this newsreel drew attention to the untied lace on Gagarin's boot. This funny detail made the astronaut even more beloved by the people.
The legendary shots of Gagarin in a heavy helmet, saying “Let's go”, were not filmed before the launch itself, but much later - that is, this is pure imitation. On April 12, none of the main participants in the launch had any time for filming. Then they decided to recreate these shots - Yuri Gagarin and Sergei Korolev in front of the cameras repeated everything they said and did on the morning before the launch.
This space flight attracted the attention of people from all over the globe, and Gagarin became a celebrity on an international, planetary scale. At the invitation of the top officials of other states, he visited about three dozen countries. The cosmonaut also made many trips across the territory of the Soviet Union. Interestingly, in the sixties of the last century, the name Yuri became the most popular male name in the USSR. Many couples wanted to name their children after a man who flew into space.
Gagarin speaks to the audience: the Italian actress Gina Lollobrigida looks at him enthusiastically
In the sixties, Gagarin led a prominent public activity, worked at the Cosmonaut Training Center, he had a second space flight in his plans ...
However, on March 27, 1968, Gagarin died unexpectedly and prematurely in a plane crash in the Vladimir region. He crashed when, together with instructor Vladimir Seregin, he carried out a planned flight on a MiG-15UTI aircraft. The circumstances of the disaster have not been fully elucidated to this day. It was just that communication with the MiG was lost, and then its wreckage was found several tens of kilometers from the airfield.
In connection with the death of Gagarin, mourning was declared in the Soviet Union. In honor of the pilot-cosmonaut, settlements, individual avenues, lanes and streets were named. On top of that, a huge number of monuments and sculptures dedicated to Gagarin were discovered in different parts of the Earth.
The value of Gagarin's flight on Vostok-1
This flight, of course, opened a new era - the era of human exploration of previously unknown and striking in their scale space spaces. How far this development will go, what we can achieve along the way, is not yet very clear. For example, now there is talk about the colonization of the Moon and Mars.
But there is no doubt that this path began on April 12, 1961. And it is quite natural that every year on this spring day such a holiday as Cosmonautics Day is celebrated.
The history of human space exploration began with Gagarin's flight
Forever, the Soviet citizen Yuri Gagarin will be in our memory and the memory of our descendants the first person who found himself in space. No one will ever take away this status and this title from him.
Documentary "A Star named Gagarin"
Even before the start of the space race, it became clear that it would cost any of its participants extremely expensive. The launch of a spacecraft is preceded by the formation of a concept, the development of samples of space technology, the creation of a scientific and industrial base, infrastructure, and training. Only the most powerful industrialized states can do this.
Flight price
When determining the price of a flight, first of all, the ratio of the payload mass (PN) to the mass of the spacecraft as a whole is determined. Today it does not exceed 19%. The introduction of new technologies in the near future will increase this figure to 25%.
Unfortunately, there are no uniform criteria for determining the cost of delivering cargo into space. The numbers that appear in open sources do not correlate well with each other due to the difference in currencies and launch times. The cost can be affected by the level of inflation, changes in the world market conditions.
In some cases, when evaluating the cost of a launch, the cost of an unfilled launch vehicle is taken, but the work of support services and the amount of insurance are not taken into account, so we can only talk about approximate figures.
And yet, according to experts, the main costs fall on the preparation and launch of the launch vehicle. According to their calculations, putting a kilogram of payload into orbit costs between 10,000 and 25,000 dollars.
Into space on a travel voucher
The idea of space tourism was first voiced half a century ago in the United States by Barron Hilton and Eric Kraft. However, it took more than 30 years to implement it. On April 28, 2001, Dennis Tito, the first space tourist, went to the ISS. The space tour cost him $20 million.
The "tourist season" on the ISS ended in October 2009 with the flight of the Canadian Guy Laliberte, who had already paid $35 million. In total, the station was visited by 7 space tourists.
How much does it cost today to fly into space as a tourist? It is clear that for a long time the cost of space tourism will be available exclusively to owners of tight wallets.
It is also clear that the demand for future commercial flights is very high and their prices will inevitably decline, which is largely facilitated by the growth in the number of participants in the space travel services market.
Among them are the organizers of flights to the ISS, the pioneers of space tourism - RSC Energia and Space Adventures. They are seriously competing with Virgin Galactic, XCOR Aerospace, Blue Origin, Space X (USA). The list of services they offer is also expanding.
So the companies World View and ZeroZinfinity are going to offer a flight into the stratosphere (30-45 km) in balloons for 75 and 116 thousand dollars, respectively. The American company Zerog is ready to provide its customers with zero gravity flight (for 20-30 seconds) for $5,000. A ticket for a promising Virgin Galactic spacecraft will cost from $150,000 to $200,000.
The most savvy would-be space tourists are increasingly asking the question: How much does it cost to go to the moon? Roscosmos spokesman Alexei Krasnov said that a ticket to the moon could be bought on the basis that the entire flight would cost about $100 million.
Launches are getting cheaper
Recently, the number of participants in the space market has multiplied, and, consequently, competition between them is becoming increasingly fierce, in connection with which there has been a trend towards cheaper launches.
So the American companies Blue Origin and Space X, headed by Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk, are actively working on the creation of inexpensive reusable launch vehicles. The technology of air launch from a transport aircraft is being worked out. There are prospects for the resumption of the suspended international project "Sea Launch".
In addition, work is underway to create more advanced and economical engines. An example of this is the (KVRD) for the promising single-stage launch vehicle Demonstrator 3, which is being developed by ARCA Space Corporation.
Man has always sought to overcome the unknown. For thousands of years, geographical discoveries were made to the limit, but transport and equipment always suffered a little more than the discoverer - ships were wrecked in a storm, a convoy with provisions fell into an abyss, sleighs froze into ice, and a person kept moving and moving towards his goal.
When there were no white spots left on the planet, we began to think about space. Programs for the exploration of the Moon and Mars are not fiction, but an inevitable future. Behind them are distant flights to the nearest stars. The farther a person goes from the Earth, the more difficulties he will encounter along the way. We have reached the point beyond which it is not technology, but people themselves who experience extreme overload.
What threats await us in space, and what technologies will allow us to survive - we will talk about this later.
Life without gravity
On September 6, 1522, the battered ship Victoria returned to Spain - the only one of the five ships of Magellan's round-the-world expedition, on which 18 of the 260 crew members sailed. The famous navigator was killed by natives from Mactan Island in the Philippine province of Cebu.
The story of Magellan well demonstrates the risks that an explorer bears when he ventures into unknown lands. But travelers on their way did not encounter something completely unknown. When we travel to the stars (and in flights to the nearest planets), we will need to create a new science - space biomedicine.
Astronauts going to Mars can break their bones and suffer from kidney stones, insomnia and depression, and in the long run - death from cancer. That is why various research groups are now testing various hypotheses on the ISS. We must know in advance how the human body and psyche are affected by a long stay in space.
Due to the reaction of the vestibular apparatus, nausea occurs, a feeling of disorientation appears. Even in pilots with a strong nervous system, for whom irritation of the vestibular apparatus during the performance of aerobatics is professionally common, severe disorientation may occur, accompanied by emotional and neurotic breakdowns. It is known that astronauts feel normal for the first few hours after entering orbit, after which most of them experience effects associated with the absence of gravity. After a few days, adaptation occurs and unpleasant phenomena disappear.
We have evolved as upright organisms. Our body has been built under the influence of gravity for millions of years. Our bones and muscles evolved to resist the impact of the gravitational field, and perfectly learned to interact with the outside world.
In microgravity, the body begins to fail. The circulatory system is designed to pump blood against gravity. For example, in the veins of the legs there are check valves that prevent the accumulation of blood in the legs, but there are no such valves in the vessels of the upper body. Without gravity, blood rises to the chest and head, causing astronauts' faces to swell and their blood pressure to rise. Staying in weightlessness for more than 6 months leads to disruption of the circulatory system. For example, there was a violation of gas exchange in the capillaries, as a result of which much less oxygen was supplied to the tissues and organs.
Before the physical support program was introduced in orbit, astronauts had a particularly hard time. After 18 days of flight on the Soyuz-9 spacecraft, cosmonaut Andrian Nikolaev recorded a decrease in heart volume by 12%. Bone tissue lost potassium and calcium, became loose. The composition of the blood has changed: hemoglobin decreased by 25%, the number of red blood cells - by 20%, and platelets - by 50%.
Astronauts literally begin to lose their own bones. First, the body excretes calcium and phosphorus, which leads to gradual weakening of the bones and an increased risk of osteoporosis. Bone loss can be as high as 1.5% per month, and recovery after returning to Earth takes at least three to four years.
Calcium does not just leave the bones - it is washed out into the blood and urine, which can lead to the occurrence of urolithiasis. All this is happening during the first days of the flight. But the flight to Mars will take almost a year, and after landing, the crew will have to operate without outside help.
Due to the lack of gravitational compression, the spine lengthens, which leads to back pain. The muscles of the back degrade significantly during their stay in space, decreasing by 19%. More than half of the ISS crew members complained of back pain. Astronauts are four times more likely than ordinary people to get a herniated disc.
Using ultrasound, scientists are testing non-invasive methods for assessing and measuring the intracranial pressure of astronauts. Image: NASA
Another serious problem is vision problems. The reason, according to research, is an increase in the volume of cerebrospinal fluid. Because of this, pressure increases, and the fluid first squeezes into the case of the optic nerve, and then along the spaces between the fibers of the optic nerve into the eyeball. As a result, farsightedness develops.
Now there are several ways to solve the problem of microgravity. Astronauts on the ISS work out on simulators for about two hours a day, counteracting the degradation of bones, muscles and blood vessels. The best solution is artificial gravity. Theoretically, it is quite possible to create it on a ship. In practice, too many resources are required so far.
Radiation
Curiosity has a RAD device on board to determine the intensity of radioactive exposure. This is the first device designed to collect data on harmful forms of radiation on the surface of Mars.
Prolonged exposure to cosmic radiation can have a very negative impact on human health. On Earth, we are protected from cosmic rays because the planet's atmosphere and magnetic field act as a shield that slows down elementary particles and atomic nuclei. It is better not to meet such particles - they lead to DNA damage, cell mutation and cancer. And when we get to Mars, we will have to live with the idea that the planet does not have an ozone layer - nothing protects against ultraviolet radiation.
The daily dose of cosmic radiation on the ISS is 1 mSv, that is, a thousandth of a sievert. In comparison, 1 Sv of radiation is associated with a 5.5% increase in cancer risk. In general, not so scary. Things get much worse when we leave Earth's magnetosphere. During the journey, the astronauts will be exposed to different types of study. High-energy subatomic particles flying from the Sun and ionizing radiation caused by a supernova explosion destroy biological tissues most rapidly. In addition to cancer, they can also cause cataracts and Alzheimer's disease.
When these particles hit the skin of the ship's hull, some of the metal atoms break apart, emitting even faster particles; this is called secondary radiation.
The data of another study show that the absence of a protective magnetic field reduces a person's cognitive functions (thinking speed, learning ability, etc.), and causes an exacerbation of allergic reactions.
Solution to the problem? Scientists are developing ways to reduce the impact, for example, using various protective materials in the ship's skin. But for now, the only solution we have is airspeed. The faster we get to the Red Planet, the less astronauts will suffer.
Insulation
As part of a scientific experiment to prepare for flights to Mars, six people lived in a dome house in Hawaii for a year.
Mental illness is another big risk for astronauts. Mental illness is hard to detect and even harder to treat.
Living on board a ship is very boring. All your activity consists of routine repetitions, lined up in a work schedule. Monotonous, repetitive tasks lead to apathy, loss of interest, carelessness, and mistakes.
Another risk is related to psychological compatibility. You need to live in a limited area in the company of people with whom you may have met a few months before the start.
Astronauts, as well-trained and highly motivated people, do not tend to complain or express their emotions harshly. Therefore, it is difficult to recognize the signs of psychological tension in a group of superprofessionals. On Earth, they may not be aware of the real problems until an emotional explosion occurs, or, more likely, our cool specialist quietly withdraws into himself and sinks into depression.
That is why experiments are being carried out in which people are locked with each other in the same room. NASA had a project "Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation", in Russia they organized "Mars-500" - an experiment to simulate a manned flight to Mars, which lasted a record 519 days.
Both experiments showed good communication between crew members, ease of interaction and readiness for teamwork at any time. The biggest psychological problem that the participants in the experiments faced was boredom, but it did not jeopardize the entire mission.
However, the obtained data cannot be called objective. The experimental conditions are too far from real interplanetary flight. Any participant can refuse further participation and leave the complex at any time, unlike a real flight to Mars. Each participant knew that he was on Earth (and would not die in a vacuum), and the simulation continued only as long as he himself wanted it. In addition, none of the participants suffered from real illnesses that astronauts can expect on their way to Mars.
There is no single solution to the problem. It will take long months of tests and the most careful psychological selection to prepare the team. And another important question still needs to be resolved: should a group of same-sex people or representatives of different sexes be sent into space?
space life
Bacteria thrive on the ISS and will obviously fly with us to Mars and beyond. At the same time, weightlessness can suppress certain immune functions, making people more vulnerable to disease.
Microflora on space stations is actively trying to eat everything it can. It is enough to have high humidity and nutrients so that bacteria and fungi begin to eat plastic insulation, grow on glass and damage it with acids released during growth.
Life will always find its way - organisms live even on the outer skin of the ISS.
A team of scientists led by Brian Krushian from NASA studied how long stay in space affects the functioning of the human immune system. It turned out that the immune system of people who were in a state of weightlessness for about six months did not work well: the ability to produce T-lymphocytes decreased, the level of leukocytes dropped, and the ability to recognize foreign microorganisms and cells was depressed. This will be a serious problem if dangerous bacteria are on board.
Obviously we won't be able to kill all bacteria (that would require killing people as well), but more work needs to be done on immune maintenance.
Big problems in big space
The biggest challenge in space is the mutations in the body where the immune system fails and drugs don't help because the metabolism has been altered by microgravity.How can we deal with mutations and other problems? To date, there is no ready-made solution to eliminate all the dangers of space travel, but there are several concepts supported by Elon Musk. In particular, the problem of cosmic radiation can be solved with the help of an optimal hull protection layer, “enhanced” by the magnetic field around the ship, which deflects the flow of charged particles. In addition, the search for effective anti-cancer drugs continues.
You can simply fly faster to Mars itself - engines with an increase in specific impulse by orders of magnitude began to be developed more than half a century ago, and with proper funding and organization of work, they may well be implemented. But very big efforts are required - therefore, no one flies on vacation to the moon at the beginning of the 21st century, although science fiction writers wrote about this many years ago.
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Man has always been captivated by the stars. That is why the history of the knowledge of the cosmos has almost as many centuries as the history of mankind itself.
The oldest astronomical observatories, star charts, astronomical observations are known, which inquisitive mankind has been diligently accumulating for many years for practical use.
There are three versions about the primacy of the invention of the optical telescope. Johann Lippershey and Zachary Jansen, who shared the honor of inventing the telescope, built their instruments in 1608, and Galileo Galilei built his telescope in 1609. It was Galileo who, with the help of his device, made the first significant space discoveries. The history of the development of "large" telescope construction begins in 1880 in Nice, where one of the largest optical telescopes was installed.
In 1931, radio engineer Karl Jansky builds a polarized unidirectional antenna to study the atmosphere, and after several years of experimenting with it, he proposes the construction of a parabolic antenna (radio telescope), but does not receive support. In 1937, Grout Reber, using Jansky's idea, builds an antenna with a parabolic reflector, and already in 1939 publishes the first results of the radio telescope. In 1944, Reber compiled the first radio maps obtained with his already improved radio telescope.
The first orbital (space) telescope was launched by the UK in 1962 to study the Sun, in 1966 and 1968 the US launched two space observatories that operated until 1972. In 1970, NASA begins the project of a large space telescope, which was named Hubble (Hubble), and was launched into orbit on April 25, 1990. It is believed that the Hubble (Hubble) in its current state will last until 2014.
The physical exploration of space by man began in 1944 during the testing of the German V-2 rocket, which entered outer space, rising to a height of 188 km.
1957 - The USSR launches the first orbiting satellite of the Earth, Sputnik-1 (October 4) and sends the first living creature, the dog Laika, into space (November 3). In 1958, the United States sent the first primate, the Gordo monkey, on a space flight (December 13).
May 28, 1959 - Baker and Able make a brief suborbital flight.
1960 - Strelka and Belka, two dogs, made an orbital flight from August 19 to 20 on the prototype of the Vostok spacecraft and returned safely to Earth.
On April 12, 1961, the first man, Yuri Gagarin, was sent into space on the Vostok spacecraft. The flight time was 1 hour 48 minutes. He laid the foundation for manned space flights. In the same year, the United States made two suborbital flights lasting 15 minutes each on the Mercury spacecraft, and cosmonaut German Titov on the Vostok-2 spacecraft made the first daily flight (1 day 1 hour 11 minutes). Also, two American chimpanzees “visited” space - Ham (January 31) and Enos (November 29).
In 1962, the Vostok-3 and Vostok-4 spacecraft made their first group flight.
June 16, 1963 - Valentina Tereshkova, the first female cosmonaut, goes into space on the Vostok-6 apparatus.
1964 - the first multi-seat spacecraft "Voskhod" (USSR) with three cosmonauts on board.
1965 - Alexei Leonov made the first manned spacewalk (March 18). On June 3, an American astronaut goes into outer space, and on December 15, 4 American astronauts go on a flight for the first time.
1966 - An American astronaut conducts the first docking in space with an unmanned object.
1967 - Soyuz-1, a new Soviet spacecraft, went into space. And on April 24, for the first time during a flight, an astronaut, Vladimir Komarov, dies.
1968 - Apollo 8 made the first manned flight to the moon. Walter Schirra became the first astronaut to travel to space three times.
1969 - the first docking of two manned spacecraft - "Soyuz-4" and "Soyuz-5" was carried out. During the same flight, the transition from one ship to another through outer space was made for the first time. Two American astronauts landed on the moon on July 21st. Neil Armstrong is the first man to walk on the moon.
1970 - a two-week flight into space was made on the Soyuz-9 spacecraft.
1971 - the entire crew of the Soyuz-11 spacecraft dies for the first time - consisting of three people on June 30 when returning to Earth.
1973 - the first flight, which lasted more than a month. And also for the first time, Soviet and American astronauts went into space at the same time.
1974 - First New Year celebration in orbit.
1980 - the duration of the flight reached six months. On July 23, the first Asian astronaut, Pham Tuan, went into space, and on September 18, the first astronaut from Latin America, Arnaldo Tamayo Mendez.
1981 - Space Shuttle Columbia STS-1 is launched for the first time.
1982 - for the first time the crew includes a female cosmonaut Svetlana Savitskaya.
1984 - female astronaut Svetlana Savitskaya on July 25 makes her first spacewalk.
1986 - the Challenger shuttle crash and the death of seven astronauts on January 28. For the first time on May 4, an interorbital flight was made from one station to another - Mir - Salyut-7 - Soyuz T-17.
1988 - a flight was made that lasted one year - from December 21, 1987 to December 21, 1988. Launch of the Buran reusable transport ship using a launch vehicle - November 15.