Who is Valentina Tereshkova

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Valentina Tereshkova - First Woman in Space

Sally Ride was the first American woman in space, but Russian cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova claims the distinction of being the first woman in space nearly 20 years before her American counterpart left earth's atmosphere.

Valentina Tereshkova Biography 

Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova (; born 6 March 1937) is the first woman in space, now a retired Soviet cosmonaut. Out of more than four hundred applicants and then out of five finalists, she was selected to pilot Vostok 6 on 16 June 1963 and become the first woman to fly in space. On this mission, lasting almost three days in space, she performed various tests on herself to collect data on the female body's reaction to spaceflight.

Before being recruited as a cosmonaut, Tereshkova was a textile-factory assembly worker and an amateur parachutist. After the female cosmonaut group was dissolved in 1969, she became a prominent member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, holding various political offices. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, she retired from politics but remains revered as a hero in Russia.

View of Earth from the Moon 

Books about Women in Space 

Read more about the women who have conquered the heavens

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Valentina Tereshkova Videos 

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First woman in space

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Interview with first woman cos...

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Valentina Tereshkova, first wo...

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Valentina Tereshkova: la prime...

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My Hero Valentina Tereshkova [...

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Valentina Tereshkova

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