Soviet spaceship "Vostok". Dossier. Interesting facts about the Soviet space program

The history of space exploration has developed in a bipolar world from the very beginning. The space confrontation was a good incentive for both American and Soviet programs. The consequence of this confrontation was that all successes became a cause for international pride and were advertised on a planetary scale. But this happened only with successes, and failures remained sealed, both for rivals and for their own citizens. Now, decades later, some information has been made public. We found unknown facts about the Soviet space program that many have never heard of before.

At the start of World War II, there was no missile technology in the USSR at all, while German scientists were developing several military missile programs at once. The scientific material given to the winners as a trophy formed the basis for Soviet developments. Captured German scientists adapted the famous V-2 for space needs, thanks to which the first launch of a satellite into Earth orbit took place in 1957.

2. The USSR space program arose by accident


Sergei Korolev, one of the leading scientists in the Soviet missile program, kept secret his developments, which were initially aimed at creating intercontinental ballistic missiles. Many at the top of the party did not take the prospect of launching satellites and rockets seriously. Only when Korolev outlined the propaganda prospects for space exploration did serious progress in this area begin.

Belka and Strelka are the first Soviet cosmonaut dogs to complete an orbital space flight and return to Earth unharmed. The flight took place on the Sputnik 5 spacecraft. The launch took place on August 19, 1960, the flight lasted more than 25 hours, during which time the ship made 17 complete orbits around the Earth. But few people know that several more animals were sent before Belka and Strelka and did not return. Many of the experimental subjects died during takeoff, from overloads and high temperatures. One of the experimental dogs, Laika, died a few hours after the launch due to a failure of the thermoregulation system.

4. Yuri Gagarin may not be the first man in space


On April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first man in space, entering Earth orbit on the Vostok spacecraft. However, some historians believe that before the triumphant launch there could have been several unsuccessful attempts, during which Gagarin's predecessors died. But no data on this matter was made public, and it is quite possible that the documents were destroyed under a program of absolute secrecy.

The launch vehicles for the Vostok spacecraft, which launched the satellites and Gagarin into orbit, were initially developed in parallel with the spy satellite program.

Pavel Belyaev and Alexei Leonov entered orbit on the Voskhod spacecraft on March 18, 1965, a mission during which Leonov made history by making the first spacewalk. Despite the historic achievement, the mission was fraught with danger: Leonov was at risk of heatstroke and decompression sickness as a result of errors in the design of his spacesuit. Nevertheless, everything went well, but after landing 180 kilometers north of the city of Perm, the astronauts had a hard time. The TASS report called this a landing in a “reserve area,” which was actually the remote Perm taiga. After landing, the huge canopy of the parachute, stuck on two tall spruce trees, fluttered in the wind. The wild forest was infested with bears and wolves, and Leonov and Belyaev had to wait about 12 hours before the rescue mission arrived.

Although the US was the first to land a man on the moon, the Soviets were the first to launch a rover onto the lunar surface. "Lunokhod-1" (Apparatus 8EL No. 203) is the world's first planetary rover to successfully operate on the surface of another celestial body - the Moon. Belonged to the series of Soviet remote-controlled self-propelled vehicles “Lunokhod” for lunar exploration (Project E-8), worked on the Moon for eleven lunar days (10.5 Earth months).

8. The USSR created the safest descent capsules in history


Despite safety setbacks in the early days of space exploration, the Soyuz capsule became the most reliable system for returning astronauts to Earth, and is still in use today.

The Soviet manned lunar programs, in contrast to their unmanned missions, were largely underperforming, largely due to the limited capabilities of the N1 rocket. In general, historians of Russian cosmonautics believe that the collapse of the Soviet lunar program with the participation of the N-1 rocket was largely due not only to the economic difficulties of those years and the split among the chief designers, but also to the attitude of the country's leadership on this project. The government did not clearly calculate its financial side, and therefore, when it came to allocating the necessary funds for it, the country's leaders demanded that the designers observe an economy regime.

Buzz Aldrin said that when they were leaving the surface of the Moon, they saw an object that was approaching the surface. The American conspiracy theory says that it was the Soviet probe Luna 15, which crashed during landing on the surface of the satellite.

Selection of records

The launch on November 3, 1957 of the second satellite with a living creature on board, the first manned flight into space on April 12, 1961 and the first manned spacewalk on March 19, 1965, the creation of the multi-module orbital station “Mir” in earth orbit.

They were created under the leadership of OKB-1 General Designer Sergei Pavlovich Korolev from 1958 to 1963.

The first manned Vostok, which was launched on April 12, 1961, became at the same time the world's first spacecraft that made it possible to carry out human flight into outer space. This day (April 12) is celebrated in Russia and many other countries around the world as World Aviation and Cosmonautics Day.

Subsequently, five more ships in the series made flights, including two group ones (without docking), including with the world’s first female cosmonaut Tereshkova. The planned 4 more flights (including longer ones, with the creation of artificial gravity) were cancelled.

Sunrise [ | ]

The ship actually repeated the ships of the Vostok series, but had an enlarged front instrument subcompartment, its descent module was reconfigured for flight and landing inside the spacecraft of two or three cosmonauts (for which ejection seats were excluded and, to save space, the cosmonauts were located without spacesuits), and the variant for spacewalks it had a hinged airlock chamber.

The flight of the Voskhod-1 spacecraft in 1964 was the world's first multi-seater, Voskhod-2 - with the world's first spacewalk. After two flights, several more planned flights (including low orbit, longer, group flights, with the first mixed female-male crew, the first woman's spacewalk) were still ahead.

Union [ | ]

The Soyuz spacecraft began to be designed in 1962 at OKB-1, first to fly around the Moon. A combination of a spacecraft and upper stages was supposed to go to the Moon 7K-9K-11K. Subsequently, this project was closed in favor of a flyby of the Moon on the L1 spacecraft launched on the Proton launch vehicle, and on the basis of 7K and the closed project of the near-Earth spacecraft "Sever" they began to make 7K-OK- a multi-purpose three-seat orbital vehicle (OS) with solar batteries, designed to practice maneuvering and docking operations in low-Earth orbit, to conduct various experiments, including the transfer of astronauts from ship to ship through outer space.

Testing of 7K-OK began in 1966. The first 3 unmanned launches were unsuccessful and revealed serious errors in the design of the ship. The 4th launch with V. Komarov turned out to be tragic - the cosmonaut died. Nevertheless, the program continued, and already in 1968 the first automatic docking of 2 Soyuz took place, in 1969 - the first manned docking and group flight of three ships, in 1970 - the first long-term flight, in 1971 - the first docking and expedition (after which the crew died) to the Salyut-DOS orbital station.

Several dozen flights (including only two that ended in the death of the crews) of the spacecraft in different versions of the Soyuz (including 7K-T, 7K-TM, 7K-MF6, 7K-T-AF, 7K-S) have been completed and are ongoing. , “Soyuz-T” (7K-ST), “Soyuz-TM” (7K-STM), “Soyuz-TMA” (7K-STMA), “Soyuz-TMA-M/TMATs” (7K-STMA-M) , including for the first docking with a foreign ship, expeditions to the Salyut-DOS, Almaz, Mir orbital stations, etc.

The ship became the basis for the creation of manned ships of unrealized lunar programs (L1 and L3 and Soyuz-Kontakt for testing the docking of L3 modules) and military programs (Soyuz 7K-VI military explorer, -P interceptor, -R reconnaissance, multifunctional "Zvezda"), as well as for the Progress automatic cargo ship.

L1 [ | ]

Lunar flyby manned program of the Korolev Design Bureau, brought to the stage of the last unmanned development launches and flights and canceled before the first manned flight.

L3 [ | ]

Lunar landing manned program of the Korolev Design Bureau, brought to the stage of the first unmanned test launches and flights and canceled before the first manned flight.

Star [ | ]

The military manned spacecraft of the Kozlov Design Bureau, the project of which was developed to replace the Soyuz 7K-VI by the Korolev Design Bureau, was brought to the pre-flight stage and was canceled in favor of the Chelomey Design Bureau complex from the Almaz military orbital station and the TKS ship.

TKS [ | ]

A manned ship from the Chelomey Design Bureau to serve the Almaz military orbital station and other tasks of the Ministry of Defense, launched on the Proton launch vehicle only in unmanned mode, but docked with the Salyut-DOS orbital stations (including manned ones).

Zarya [ | ]

Partially reusable manned transport ship of the Korolev Design Bureau with launch on the Zenit launch vehicle, the project of which was canceled at the design stage due to the concentration of resources on the creation of the Energia-Buran system.

Diamond [ | ]

Long-term manned military orbital stations of the Chelomey Design Bureau, launched on the Proton launch vehicle under the names "Salyut-2, -3, -5", "Cosmos-1870", "Almaz-1", of which two were operated by manned ones (Salyut-3 ,-5"). They also had weapons (guns) on board.

Salyut-DOS [ | ]

Long-term manned orbital stations TsKBEM, launched on the Proton launch vehicle under the names "Cosmos-557", "Salyut-1, -4, -6, -7", of which all except the first were operated by manned people. The last two had two docking ports and could simultaneously take on board two manned or automatic cargo and other ships, including heavy TKS.

World [ | ]

Spiral [ | ]

Buran [ | ]

Buran OK-GLI sample (BTS 002) for testing in the atmosphere. Aviation and Space Salon MAKS, 1999

"Buran" is a Soviet heavy manned winged reusable transport spacecraft - a spaceplane launched by the super-heavy Energia launch vehicle.

According to the deputy chief designer of the Buran reusable space system (ISS), “The need to create a domestic reusable space system as a means of deterring a potential enemy was identified during analytical studies conducted by the Institute of Applied Mathematics of the USSR Academy of Sciences and NPO Energia in the period 1971-1975 gg. It has been shown that the United States, by commissioning its reusable Space Shuttle system, will be able to gain a decisive military advantage in terms of preemptive (i.e. preemptive) attack."

The only one of the five built, the first ship of the series made its only unmanned flight in 1988, after which the program was closed in 1993 due to the collapse of the USSR and the difficult economic situation.
In post-Soviet Russia, projects were developed for the reusable spacecraft MAKS (cancelled) and the partially reusable spacecraft Clipper (cancelled) and Rus (ongoing).

TASS-DOSSIER /Inna Klimacheva/. April 12, 2016 marks the 55th anniversary of the first human flight into space. This historic flight was made by USSR citizen Yuri Gagarin. Having launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on the Vostok satellite, the cosmonaut spent 108 minutes in space and returned safely to Earth.

"East"- the world's first manned spacecraft. Created in the USSR for flights in low-Earth orbit.

Project history

On May 22, 1959, a resolution was issued by the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR, which provided for the development and launch of a satellite to carry out human flight into space. OKB-1 (now RSC Energia named after S.P. Korolev) headed by chief designer Sergei Korolev was appointed the lead organization for the project.

One of the main developers of the ship was the head of the design department sector, Konstantin Feoktistov (later a cosmonaut), the ship's control system was developed under the leadership of Deputy Chief Designer Boris Chertok, the orientation system was created by designers Boris Raushenbakh and Viktor Legostaev.

Two versions of the ship were created, designated: 1 TO(experimental unmanned version) and 3KA(intended for manned flights). In addition, based on the experimental version, an automatic reconnaissance satellite was developed - 2K.

In total, more than 100 organizations were involved in the program for preparing human space flight, called “Vostok”.

Characteristics

Vostok was a satellite ship, that is, unlike modern spacecraft, it could not perform orbital maneuvers.

The length of the ship is 4.3 m, the maximum diameter is 2.43 m, the launch weight is 4 tons 725 kg. Designed for one crew member and flight duration up to 10 days.

It consisted of two compartments - a spherical descent vehicle (volume - 5.2 cubic meters) to accommodate the astronaut and a conical instrument compartment (3 cubic meters) with the apparatus and equipment of the main systems of the ship, as well as the braking propulsion system.

It was equipped with automatic and manual control systems, automatic orientation to the Sun and manual orientation to the Earth, life support, and temperature control. Equipped with radio telemetry equipment to monitor the condition of a person and ship systems. Two television cameras were installed in the ship's cabin to monitor the astronaut. Two-way radiotelephone communication with the Earth was carried out using equipment operating in the ultrashort-wave and short-wave ranges. Some major systems have been duplicated for reliability.

The sealed descent vehicle (DA) had three windows: one technological and two with lids that could be separated using pyrotechnic devices for ejecting the seat with the astronaut and ejecting the SA parachute.

For safety reasons, the astronaut was in a spacesuit during the entire flight. In case of depressurization of the cabin, the suit had a supply of oxygen for four hours; it provided protection for the astronaut during ejection of the seat at an altitude of up to 10 km. The SK-1 spacesuit and chair were created by pilot plant number 918 (now the Zvezda Research and Production Enterprise named after Academician G.I. Severin, Tomilino village, Moscow region).

When inserted into orbit, the ship was covered with a disposable nose fairing, which had a hatch for emergency ejection of the astronaut. After the flight, the descent vehicle returned to Earth along a ballistic trajectory. At a height of seven kilometers, an ejection was carried out, then the astronaut in the spacesuit separated from the chair and descended independently by parachute. In addition, it was possible to land the spacecraft with an astronaut on board (without ejection).

Launches

The Vostok spacecraft were launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome using a launch vehicle of the same name.

At the first stage, unmanned launches were carried out, including with animals on board. The experimental ships were given the name "Sputnik". The first launch took place on May 15. On August 19, the dogs Belka and Strelka made a successful flight on the satellite ship.

The first ship intended for manned flights (3KA) launched on March 9, 1961, in its descent module there was a dog Chernushka in a container, and a human dummy in the ejection seat. The flight program was completed: the aircraft with the dog landed successfully, and the dummy was ejected as usual. Following this, on March 25, a second similar launch was carried out with the dog Zvezdochka on board. The animals completely covered the path that lay ahead of the first cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin: takeoff, one orbit around the Earth and landing.

On March 30, 1961, in a note to the CPSU Central Committee, signed by the Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers (CM) of the USSR Dmitry Ustinov and the heads of departments responsible for rocket and space technology, it was proposed in TASS messages to call the manned spacecraft "Vostok" (according to documents: "Vostok- 3KA").

On April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin on the Vostok satellite made a flight lasting 108 minutes (1 hour 48 minutes) and returned safely to Earth.

After him, the following people flew on the Vostok spacecraft: German Titov (1961), Andriyan Nikolaev and Pavel Popovich (1962; the first group flight of two spacecraft - Vostok-3 and Vostok-4), Valery Bykovsky (1963; the longest flight on ships of this type - almost 5 days) and the first female cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova (1963).

A total of 13 Vostok spacecraft were launched: 6 manned and 7 unmanned (including 5 experimental launches - two successful, one emergency, two abnormal).

Vostok launch vehicle

The launch vehicle was used to launch the first automatic lunar stations, manned satellites (Vostok), and various artificial satellites.

The project was launched by a resolution of the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR dated March 20, 1958, which provided for the creation of a space rocket based on the two-stage intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) R-7 ("seven", index 8K71) with the addition of the 3rd block steps.

Work on the rocket was carried out by the developer of the "seven", OKB-1 (now RSC Energia named after S.P. Korolev) under the leadership of chief designer Sergei Korolev.

The preliminary design of the third stage of the R-7 ICBM, designated "Block E", was released in the same 1958. The launch vehicle was given the designation 8K72K. The launch vehicle had three stages. Its length was 38.2 m, diameter - 10.3 m, launch weight - about 287 tons.

Engines of all stages used kerosene and liquid oxygen as fuel. The control system for block E was developed by NII-885 (now the Research and Production Center for Automation and Instrumentation named after Academician N.A. Pilyugin, Moscow) under the leadership of Nikolai Pilyugin.

It could launch a payload weighing up to 4.5 tons into space.

The launch vehicle was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. The first test launches were carried out as part of the lunar program.

The rocket first launched on September 23, 1958 with the E1 lunar station, but the launch ended in an accident at the 87th second of flight (the reason was the occurrence of increasing longitudinal vibrations). The next two starts were also emergency ones. The fourth launch on January 2, 1959 with the Luna-1 automatic interplanetary station (AMS) was crowned with success. In the same year, the rocket successfully launched the Luna-2 and Luna-3 spacecraft into space.

On May 15, 1960, a prototype of the manned spacecraft "Vostok" - experimental product 1K (open name - "Sputnik") was launched using a rocket. The next launches in 1960 were carried out with 1K ships, on board which there were dogs in special containers. On August 19, a satellite ship with dogs Belka and Strelka was launched.

On March 9 and 25, 1961, two successful launches took place with spacecraft designed for manned flight (3KA), also with dogs on board. The animals Chernushka and Zvezdochka completely covered the path that lay ahead of the first cosmonaut: takeoff, one orbit around the Earth and landing.

On April 12, 1961, a launch vehicle launched the Vostok satellite into space with Yuri Gagarin.

The first public demonstration of a rocket prototype took place in 1967 at the Le Bourget Air Show in France. At the same time, for the first time, the rocket was called “Vostok”; before that, in the Soviet press it was simply called a “heavy-duty launch vehicle”, etc.

In total, 26 launches of the Vostok rocket were carried out - 17 successful, 8 emergency and one abnormal (during the launch on December 22, 1960, due to a malfunction of the rocket, the satellite ship with dogs flew along a suborbital trajectory, the animals survived). The last one took place on July 10, 1964 with two Electron scientific satellites.

On the basis of the Vostok rocket, other modifications were subsequently created: Vostok-2, Vostok-2A, Vostok-2M, which were produced at the Kuibyshev Progress plant (now the Progress Rocket and Space Center, Samara) .

Launches were carried out both from Baikonur and from the Plesetsk cosmodrome. With the help of rockets, satellites of the Cosmos, Zenit, Meteor, etc. series were launched into space. The operation of these space carriers ended in August 1991 with the launch of the Vostok-2M rocket with the Indian Earth remote sensing satellite IRS-1B (" Ai-ar-es-1-bi").

Results of the program

Manned flights on the Vostok spacecraft provided an opportunity to study the influence of orbital flight conditions on the condition and performance of a person; on the ships of this series, the basic structures and systems and principles of spacecraft construction were worked out.

They were replaced by the next generation of ships - Voskhod (two manned launches in 1964 and 1966). In 1967, manned spacecraft of the Soyuz type began to operate.

The USSR deservedly held the title of the most powerful space power in the world. The first satellite launched into Earth orbit, Belka and Strelka, the flight of the first man into space are more than compelling reasons for this. But there were scientific breakthroughs and tragedies in Soviet space history unknown to the general public. They will be discussed in our review.

1. Interplanetary station “Luna-1”

During the flight to the Moon, an experiment was carried out to create an “artificial comet” - the station released a cloud of sodium vapor, which glowed for several minutes and made it possible to observe the station from Earth as a 6th magnitude star. Interestingly, Luna-1 was at least the fifth attempt by the USSR to launch a spacecraft to the Earth’s natural satellite; the first 4 ended in failure. Radio signals from the station stopped three days after launch. Later in 1959, the Luna 2 probe reached the surface of the Moon, making a hard landing.

The initial launch went well, but after a week, communication with the probe was lost (presumably due to overheating of the direction sensor to the Sun). As a result, the uncontrolled station passed 100,000 kilometers from Venus.

Luna 3, launched on October 4, 1959, was the third spacecraft successfully sent to the Moon. Unlike the previous two Luna probes, this one was equipped with a camera that was designed to photograph the far side of the Moon for the first time in history. Unfortunately, the camera was primitive and complex, so the pictures turned out to be of poor quality.

The radio transmitter was so weak that the first attempts to transmit images to Earth failed. When the station approached the Earth, having flown around the Moon, 17 photos were obtained, in which scientists discovered that the “invisible” side of the Moon is mountainous, and in contrast to the one that is turned towards the Earth.

4. First successful landing on another planet

On August 17, 1970, the automatic research space station “Venera-7” was launched, which was supposed to land a descent module on the surface of Venus. To survive in the atmosphere of Venus for as long as possible, the lander was made of titanium and equipped with thermal insulation (it was assumed that the pressure at the surface could reach 100 atmospheres, the temperature - 500 ° C, and the wind speed at the surface - 100 m/s).

The station reached Venus, and the device began its descent. However, the descent vehicle's braking parachute ruptured, after which it fell for 29 minutes, eventually crashing into the surface of Venus. It was believed that the device could not survive such an impact, but later analysis of recorded radio signals showed that the probe was transmitting temperature readings from the surface for 23 minutes after the hard landing.

5. The first artificial object on the surface of Mars

“Mars-2” and “Mars-3” are two automatic twin interplanetary stations that were launched in May 1971 to the Red Planet with a difference of several days. Since the US beat the Soviet Union to being the first to orbit Mars (Mariner 9, which also launched in May 1971, beat two Soviet probes by two weeks and became the first spacecraft to orbit another planet), the USSR wanted to make the first landing on the surface Mars.

The Mars 2 lander crashed on the surface of the planet, and the Mars 3 lander managed to make a soft landing and began transmitting data. But the transmission stopped after 20 seconds due to a severe dust storm on the surface of Mars, as a result of which the USSR lost the first clear images taken on the surface of the planet.

6. The first automatic device that delivered extraterrestrial matter to Earth

Before this, 5 attempts were also unsuccessful due to problems with the launch vehicle. However, Luna 16, the sixth Soviet probe, was successfully launched after Apollo 11 and Apollo 12. The station landed in the Sea of ​​Plenty area. After that, she took soil samples (in the amount of 101 grams) and returned to Earth.

7. The first three-seat spacecraft

Voskhod was considered unsafe even by Soviet designers, since space for three crew members was freed up due to the fact that ejection seats were abandoned in the design. Also, the cabin was so cramped that the astronauts were in it without spacesuits. As a result, if the cabin had depressurized, the crew would have died. In addition, the new landing system, consisting of two parachutes and an antediluvian rocket, was tested only once before launch.

8. The first astronaut of African descent

9. First docking with an uninhabited object

On February 11, 1985, after six months of absence of people on the Salyut-7 space station, communication with it was suddenly interrupted. The short circuit caused all electrical systems of Salyut 7 to turn off, and the temperature at the station dropped to -10 °C.

In an attempt to save the station, an expedition was sent to it on the Soyuz T-13 spacecraft converted for these purposes, piloted by the most experienced Soviet cosmonaut, Vladimir Dzhanibekov. The automated docking system did not work, so manual docking had to be carried out. The docking was successful, and work to restore the space station took place over several days.

10. First human victim in space

On June 30, 1971, the Soviet Union eagerly awaited the return of three cosmonauts who had spent 23 days at the Salyut 1 station. But after the landing of the Soyuz-11 spacecraft, not a single sound was heard from inside. When the capsule was opened from the outside, three dead astronauts were found inside, with dark blue spots on their faces and blood flowing from their noses and ears.

According to the investigation, the tragedy occurred immediately after the separation of the descent module from the orbital module. Depressurization occurred in the ship's cabin, after which the astronauts suffocated.

Spaceships that were designed at the dawn of the space age seem like rarities compared to. But it is possible that these projects will be implemented.

From the very beginning, the history of space exploration developed in a bipolar world. The space confrontation was a good incentive for both American and Soviet programs. The consequence of this confrontation was that all successes became a cause for international pride and were advertised on a planetary scale. But this happened only with successes, and failures remained sealed, both for rivals and for their own citizens.

Captured missiles

At the start of World War II, there was no missile technology in the USSR at all, while German scientists were developing several military missile programs at once. The scientific material given to the winners as a trophy formed the basis for Soviet developments. Captured German scientists adapted the famous V-2 for space needs, thanks to which the first launch of a satellite into Earth orbit took place in 1957.

The USSR space program arose by accident

Sergei Korolev, one of the leading scientists in the Soviet missile program, kept secret his developments, which were initially aimed at creating intercontinental ballistic missiles. Many at the top of the party did not take the prospect of launching satellites and rockets seriously. Only when Korolev outlined the propaganda prospects for space exploration did serious progress in this area begin.

Space dogs did not return to Earth

Belka and Strelka are the first Soviet cosmonaut dogs to complete an orbital space flight and return to Earth unharmed. The flight took place on the Sputnik 5 spacecraft. The launch took place on August 19, 1960, the flight lasted more than 25 hours, during which time the ship made 17 complete orbits around the Earth. But few people know that several more animals were sent before Belka and Strelka and did not return. Many of the experimental subjects died during takeoff, from overloads and high temperatures. One of the experimental dogs, Laika, died a few hours after the launch due to a failure of the thermoregulation system.

Yuri Gagarin may not be the first man in space

On April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first man in space, entering Earth orbit on the Vostok spacecraft. However, some historians believe that before the triumphant launch there could have been several unsuccessful attempts, during which Gagarin's predecessors died. But no data on this matter was made public, and it is quite possible that the documents were destroyed under a program of absolute secrecy.

The first satellite network in the world

The launch vehicles for the Vostok spacecraft, which launched the satellites and Gagarin into orbit, were initially developed in parallel with the spy satellite program.

Astronauts and wolves

Pavel Belyaev and Alexei Leonov entered orbit on the Voskhod spacecraft on March 18, 1965, a mission during which Leonov made history by making the first spacewalk. Despite the historic achievement, the mission was fraught with danger: Leonov was at risk of heatstroke and decompression sickness as a result of errors in the design of his spacesuit. Nevertheless, everything went well, but after landing 180 kilometers north of the city of Perm, the astronauts had a hard time. The TASS report called this a landing in a “reserve area,” which was actually the remote Perm taiga. After landing, the huge canopy of the parachute, stuck on two tall spruce trees, fluttered in the wind. The wild forest was infested with bears and wolves, and Leonov and Belyaev had to wait about 12 hours before the rescue mission arrived.

The USSR launched the first lunar rover

Although the US was the first to land a man on the moon, the Soviets were the first to launch a rover onto the lunar surface. "Lunokhod-1" (Apparatus 8EL No. 203) is the world's first planetary rover to successfully operate on the surface of another celestial body - the Moon. Belonged to the series of Soviet remote-controlled self-propelled vehicles “Lunokhod” for lunar exploration (Project E-8), worked on the Moon for eleven lunar days (10.5 Earth months).

The USSR created the safest descent capsules in history

Despite safety setbacks in the early days of space exploration, the Soyuz capsule became the most reliable system for returning astronauts to Earth, and is still in use today.

The USSR did not have a good relationship with the Moon

The Soviet manned lunar programs, in contrast to their unmanned missions, were largely underperforming, largely due to the limited capabilities of the N1 rocket. In general, historians of Russian cosmonautics believe that the collapse of the Soviet lunar program with the participation of the N-1 rocket was largely due not only to the economic difficulties of those years and the split among the chief designers, but also to the attitude of the country's leadership on this project. The government did not clearly calculate its financial side, and therefore, when it came to allocating the necessary funds for it, the country's leaders demanded that the designers observe an economy regime.

Luna-15

Buzz Aldrin said that when they were leaving the surface of the Moon, they saw an object that was approaching the surface. The American conspiracy theory says that it was the Soviet probe Luna 15, which crashed during landing on the surface of the satellite.