Many of the women on the squad described Valentina Tereshkova as a good friend. “She always advocated for our interests in front of the bosses.
Russian cosmonaut and pilot, first woman to have flown in space (born 1937)
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She orbited Earth 48 times alone in 1963 — the first woman in space, the youngest ever to do it, and still the only one to fly solo. A textile worker and amateur skydiver at 26, launched into a record no one else has matched.
Valentina Tereshkova was born 6 March 1937 and worked in a textile factory while skydiving on the side before the Soviet space programme recruited her. On 16 June 1963, at 26, she flew Vostok 6 solo, spent nearly three days in orbit, and became the first woman in space. After the first female cosmonaut group dissolved in 1969, she stayed on as an instructor, graduated from the Zhukovsky Air Force Engineering Academy, re-qualified for flight but never launched again, and retired from the Air Force in 1997 as a major general. She held political office under the Soviet Union — including a seat on…
Sourced, dated quotes from Valentina Tereshkova
Many of the women on the squad described Valentina Tereshkova as a good friend. “She always advocated for our interests in front of the bosses.
As launch day drew closer, some of the women suspected they would not be chosen.
Tereshkova logged more than 70 hours in space and made 48 orbits of Earth. Soviet and European TV viewers saw her smiling face and her logbook floating in front of her.
We believed each of us was worthy of being chosen... There is a bond, a comradeship, that never goes away. (about the five women who competed for the 1963 space mission)...
I think it’s tremendously important to meet people, to establish a connection and tell people about space...
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