# Vostok 6

> Soviet space mission of 1963, the first human spaceflight to carry a woman (Valentina Tereshkova) into space

**Wikidata**: [Q269668](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q269668)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vostok_6)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/vostok-6

## Summary  
Vostok 6 was a Soviet crewed spaceflight launched on 16 June 1963 that carried Valentina Tereshkova, making her the first woman to travel into space. The mission lasted 4 250 minutes (about 71 hours), completing 48 orbits of low‑Earth orbit before landing in Kazakhstan on 19 June 1963.

## Key Facts  
- **Launch date:** 16 June 1963 (Baikonur Cosmodrome, “Gagarin’s Start”).  
- **Landing date:** 19 June 1963 in Kazakhstan (≈ 53.209° N, 80.804° E).  
- **Crew:** Valentina Tereshkova – the first female cosmonaut.  
- **Mission duration:** 4 250 minutes (≈ 71 hours).  
- **Spacecraft mass at take‑off:** 4 713 kg.  
- **Orbit:** Low Earth orbit; periapsis 180 km, apoapsis 231 km, inclination 64.9°, orbital period 87.8 min, 48 revolutions completed.  
- **Launch vehicle:** Vostok‑K expendable carrier rocket.  
- **Operator:** Soviet space program; part of the Vostok programme, following Vostok 5.  
- **Call sign:** “Чайка” (Russian for “seagull”).  
- **Identifiers:** COSPAR ID 1963‑023A; NSSDCA ID 1963‑023A; Freebase ID /m/01bljv.

## FAQs  
### Q: Who was the astronaut on Vostok 6?  
A: Valentina Tereshkova flew Vostok 6, becoming the first woman to travel into space.

### Q: When did Vostok 6 launch and land?  
A: The spacecraft launched on 16 June 1963 and safely landed in Kazakhstan on 19 June 1963.

### Q: How long did the Vostok 6 mission last?  
A: The mission lasted 4 250 minutes, roughly 71 hours, during which the spacecraft completed 48 Earth orbits.

### Q: What rocket lifted Vostok 6 into orbit?  
A: Vostok 6 was launched aboard a Vostok‑K expendable carrier rocket from Baikonur’s “Gagarin’s Start” launch pad.

### Q: Why is Vostok 6 historically important?  
A: It marked the first time a woman flew in space, demonstrating the Soviet Union’s capability to extend human spaceflight beyond male astronauts and influencing gender inclusion in space programs worldwide.

## Why It Matters  
Vostok 6 broke a fundamental gender barrier in human spaceflight, proving that women could endure the rigors of orbital travel. Occurring during the Cold War’s intense space race, the mission showcased Soviet technological prowess and served as a powerful propaganda tool, reinforcing the USSR’s claim of scientific and social progress. Tereshkova’s flight inspired generations of women to pursue careers in science, engineering, and aerospace, gradually reshaping the demographic composition of astronaut corps worldwide. Moreover, the mission’s technical success—long‑duration solo flight, reliable re‑entry, and safe recovery—contributed valuable data on human endurance, life‑support systems, and orbital mechanics that informed subsequent Soviet and international missions.

## Notable For  
- **First female spaceflight:** Valentina Tereshkova became the inaugural woman to orbit Earth.  
- **Longest solo flight at the time:** 71 hours in space without a backup crew.  
- **48 completed orbits:** Demonstrated sustained orbital stability for a single‑person spacecraft.  
- **Successful re‑entry and recovery:** Landed intact in Kazakhstan, confirming the reliability of Vostok’s descent system.  
- **Symbolic Cold‑War achievement:** Strengthened Soviet prestige in the global space race.

## Body  

### Overview  
Vostok 6 was the sixth mission of the Soviet Union’s Vostok programme, designed to test human endurance in space and to achieve milestones in the geopolitical competition with the United States. It followed Vostok 5, which carried a male cosmonaut, and preceded later multi‑crew missions.

### Mission Profile  
- **Launch:** 16 June 1963, 07:30 UTC, from Baikonur Cosmodrome’s “Gagarin’s Start” pad.  
- **Orbit insertion:** Achieved a near‑circular low‑Earth orbit (180 km × 231 km).  
- **Duration:** 4 250 minutes (≈ 71 hours).  
- **Landing:** 19 June 1963, 04:00 UTC, in the Kazakh steppe; recovery team retrieved the capsule and crew safely.

### Spacecraft & Launch Vehicle  
- **Spacecraft type:** Vostok, a crewed spacecraft class built by the Soviet Union.  
- **Mass at liftoff:** 4 713 kg.  
- **Launch vehicle:** Vostok‑K, an expendable carrier rocket derived from the R‑7 family.  
- **Call sign:** “Чайка” (Seagull), used for radio communications during the flight.

### Crew  
- **Valentina Tereshkova:** 26‑year‑old textile factory worker selected from a pool of 400 candidates; she performed a series of scientific and engineering tasks, including monitoring spacecraft systems and conducting visual observations of Earth.

### Orbital Parameters  
| Parameter | Value | Unit |
|-----------|-------|------|
| Periapsis | 180 | km |
| Apoapsis | 231 | km |
| Inclination | 64.9 | ° |
| Orbital period | 87.8 | min |
| Orbits completed | 48 | – |

### Legacy  
The mission’s success validated the Vostok design for longer solo flights and demonstrated that physiological differences did not preclude women from space travel. It paved the way for subsequent Soviet missions involving women (e.g., Soyuz T‑7) and influenced NASA’s eventual inclusion of female astronauts in the 1970s and beyond.

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## References

1. Jonathan's Space Report
2. Freebase Data Dumps. 2013