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Cosmonaut / Astronaut

Valentina Tereshkova

oviet cosmonaut and the first woman in space. On 16 June 1963 she launched aboard Vostok 6 and in under three days orbited the Earth forty-eight times. She remains the only woman ever to have flown a solo space mission.
Spaceflights
Portrait of cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova in uniform.
Spaceflights
1
Time in space
≈ 3 days

Biography

Before being selected for the cosmonaut corps she worked in a textile factory and was an amateur parachutist — that jumping experience proved decisive, because Vostok cosmonauts ejected during their return. After her flight she became a symbol of the Soviet program and a prominent politician.

Missions

Spaceflights

Vostok 6

16 June 1963

Vostok 6

Vostok 6 carried Valentina Tereshkova into orbit on 16 June 1963 — the first woman in space. In under three days she orbited the Earth forty-eight times and landed on 19 June near Barnaul. It was the final flight of the Vostok program.

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Facts

Things you may not know

  1. She remains the only woman to have flown in space alone, without any other crew.

  2. Before her selection she worked in a textile factory and had made over 90 parachute jumps.

  3. She used the call sign "Chaika" (Seagull) throughout the flight.

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