A young Russian pilot called Yuri Gagarin was the first person in space. He orbited the Earth in a small capsule called Vostok 1 on 12 April, 1961. His journey lasted less than two hours.
Amazing! The first living creature in space was a Russian dog, called Laika. She made a seven-day journey in the space capsule Sputnik 2 in November 1957.
Who was the first woman in space?
The first woman in space was Russian, too. Valentina Tereshkova made a three-day space journey in Vostok 6 in 1963. The first American woman in space was Sally Ride, in 1983.
Is it true? A chimp could survive a space flight.
Yes. Ham was the first to try out the Mercury capsule in 1961. Despite travelling at 8,045 kph, the chimpanzee survived the 16-minute flight.
Who took the first spacewalk?
The cosmonaut (Russian astronaut) Alexei Leonov took a ten-minute spacewalk on 18 March 1965. To make sure he didn’t float off, Leonov tied himself to his capsule.
Picture Credit : Google