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Valentina Tereshkova, in full Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova, (born March 6, 1937, Maslennikovo, Russia, U.S.S.R.), Soviet cosmonaut, the first woman to travel into space. On June 16, 1963, she was launched in the spacecraft Vostok 6, which completed 48 orbits in 71 hours. In space at the same time was Valery F. Bykovsky, who had been launched two days earlier in Vostok 5; both landed on June 19.

Although she had no pilot training, Tereshkova was an accomplished amateur parachutist and on this basis was accepted for the cosmonaut program when she volunteered in 1961. She left the program just after her flight, and on November 3, 1963, she married Andriyan G. Nikolayev, another cosmonaut. From 1966 until 1991 she was an active member in the U.S.S.R. Supreme Soviet. She directed the Soviet Women's Committee in 1968, and from 1974 to 1991 she served as a member of the Supreme Soviet Presidium. In 2008 Tereshkova became the deputy chair of the parliament of Yaroslavl province as a member of the United Russia party. Three years later she was elected to the Duma. Tereshkova was named a Hero of the Soviet Union and was twice awarded the Order of Lenin.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica Amy Tikkanen.

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Valentina Tereshkova | Biography, Vostok 6, & Facts

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Valentina Tereshkova, in full Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova, (born March 6, 1937, Maslennikovo, Russia, U.S.S.R.), Soviet cosmonaut, the first woman to travel into space. On June 16, 1963, she was launched in the spacecraft Vostok 6, which completed 48 orbits in 71 hours. In space at the same time was Valery F.

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"It doesn't matter what country or what political system you are from. Space brings you together" - Valentina Tereshkova

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Valentina was 26 when she first traveled to space. Her first space flight was Vostok 6. She was launched on a solo mission on June 16, 1963. She spent more than 70 hours orbiting the Earth.

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Valentina Tereshkova is a very optimistic and ambitious person. She loved parachuting and this is what made her an ideal candidate for a space flight. She is very brave and always up for a challenge.

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She retired from the Russian Air Force in 1997 with the rank as major general. In 2008 she became deputy chair of the parliament of Yaroslavl and is a member of the United Russia Party. She was later elected to the Duma and still serves that body today.

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Valentina Tereshkova was born on March 16, 1937. Her parents are Vladimir Tereshkov and Elena Tereshkova. Valentina is a Soviet cosmonaut and the first ever women in space. She was married to Andrian Nikolayev and had a daughter named Elena. Valentina and Andrian later divorced in 1980.

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"If women can be railroad workers in Russia, why can't they fly in space?" - Valentina Tereshkova

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This is Valentina Tereshkova (left) with Russian president Vladimir Putin (right).

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Valentina Tereshkova: The First Woman in Space

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Valentina was the second child of three children. Her father, Vladimir, was a tractor driver and her mother, Elena, worked in a textile plant. Valentina started going to school in 1945 when she was eight years old. In 1953, she left school and began working at a tire factory.