Cosmonaut

On 18 March 1965, a 30-year-old Soviet Air Force pilot named Alexei Leonov opened the hatch of an inflatable airlock on Voskhod 2 and became the first human being to float free in space. According to the Smithsonian National Air and…

Back in 1967, the Soviet Union celebrated its 50th anniversary. As well as events on the ground, part of these celebrations involved a stunt to be carried out in space, which ultimately ended in the unnecessary death of cosmonaut…