For many years, when kids were asked what they wanted to be when they grew up, their answers were not YouTubers or social media influencers. Instead, children in the 20th century enthusiastically said they wanted to be astronauts, who could fly spaceships. This was because many of them got to see the start of the Space Race, a competition between Cold War rivals¡Xthe USSR and America¡Xin the 1950s and 1960s to see who was more technologically advanced. While the US eventually won the Space Race by landing people on the moon first, the USSR was a leader in many ways in the beginning. They put the first artificial satellite into space in 1957. Then, they put the first person into space in 1961. Additionally, in 1963, the USSR sent the first woman into space, Valentina Tereshkova.
Born in a small village north of Moscow, Tereshkova was selected from more than 400 candidates who had applied to the Soviet cosmonaut corps after being inspired by Yuri Gagarin¡¦s 108-minute space flight in 1961. She then had 18 months of training and was chosen to pilot Vostok 6 at the age of 26 due to her considerable skydiving experience. Tereshkova orbited the Earth 48 times during her 70.8-hour flight. Upon her return, she parachuted to safety before the capsule hit the ground.
Later on in her life, Tereshkova was awarded many medals and held several high-level positions in the USSR. Her historic flight shattered the glass ceiling for women in space, paving the way for the next woman in space, Cosmonaut Svetlana Savitskaya, who was sent into orbit 19 years later in 1982.
What Did You Learn?
1. How did the US win the Space Race in the 20th century?
2. Why was Tereshkova chosen to be the first woman to fly in space?
°Ñ¦Òµª®×:
1. By landing people on the moon first.
2. Due to / Because of her considerable skydiving experience.
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