Gherman
Titov was the first man to film in Space when he flew on Vostok-2, and on display is the actual camera he used. We then come to one of the prize exhibits of Cosmonauts:
the Vostok-6 capsule in which
Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman to fly in Space in June 1963.
Tereshkova remains the only woman ever to fly solo in Space. The Soviet Union
trumpeted Tereshkova’s flight as a sign of the equality of the sexes in their
country; but it was to take another 18 years before the second Russian woman,
Svetlana Savitskaya, was sent into Space. The USSR – and, indeed, post-Soviet
Russia – remains a decidedly patriarchal society.
Vostok-6 is displayed behind glass,
as part of its protective heat shield is made of asbestos, something which
causes much more concern in the UK than it does in Russia. The capsule belongs
to Energia, the makers of the Russian rockets, and is on display in their own
private museum, which is not open to the general public. But it is also on open display in that museum. In order to
bring the capsule to England, the Science Museum had to apply to HMRC for a
special licence to import asbestos (available only for items of cultural
interest which will be properly protected whist in situ and will be sent back
after the agreed period of time); some of the Museum’s staff had to be trained
how to deal with asbestos; and they had to wrap the capsule in three layers of
industrial cling-film, while wearing full protective suits. Russian staff
couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about.
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Picture of Tereshkova on one of the Exhibition's souvenir tee-shirts. Tereshkova opened the Exhibition in September 2015 |
The juxtaposition of two capsules
means that a fascinating comparison can be made between Vostok-6, the last of
the Vostok series, and Voskhod-1,
the successor. The basic shape of the capsule as a large ball didn’t change.
But Voskhod-1 has a cavity into which was fitted a parachute measuring
1,000sq.m, and retro-rockets on the opposite side. This meant that the
returning capsule could be slowed down sufficiently for the Cosmonauts (now in
the plural) to remain in the capsule to land. Korolev was keen to make the most
of this, and suggested that three men could be put in the capsule. One of the
engineers, Boris Yegorov, objected; until Korolev suggested that it would be a
good idea if one of the crew were an engineer; Yegorov changed his mind and
became the third crew member.
How Vostok and Voskhod capsules looked when in Space. It was only "the ball" which returned to Earth. (Cosmonautics Museum, Kaluga). |
There were only two Voskhod
missions, but each of them has a special place in the history of Spaceflight.
Voskhod-1 had the first crew and the first and only improperly dressed
Cosmonauts; and it was from Voskhod-2, on 18 March 1965, that Alexei Leonov
performed the first ever walk in Space. It was very nearly the last thing that
Leonov ever did.
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Symbolic depiction of a walk in Space outside the Exhibition. The reality was very different. |
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An animated Alexei Leonov speaking in the Science Museum in December 2015. |
The Exhibition features the actual film of Leonov leaving the inflatable air-lock which took him from the Voskhod-2 capsule out into open Space. And the first thing to go wrong can be seen if you examine the film closely. When he first moves out, there is a crease in the sleeve of his spacesuit. But as he moves away from the air-lock, tethered to it by a cable, the crease disappears as the spacesuit inflates in a way it was not supposed to. This meant that Leonov could not move his hands, as his gloves were so swollen up that he could not bend his fingers. He can be seen on the film trying unsuccessfully to grab the cable.
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Illustration showing how the air-lock came out of the Voskhod-2 spacecraft, displayed in the Space Museum in Kaluga |
Having found his way back to the
air-lock, another shock was in store for Leonov: his spacesuit was still too
inflated for him to fit through the hatch. He was meant to go feet first, so
that he could close the hatch before returning into the capsule. He decided
that with his air supply quickly running out he had no alternative but to turn
around and go head first into the hatch, pulling himself with all his might
through the confined area. Once inside, though, he realised that the diameter
of the air-lock was 1.6m, whilst he in his spacesuit and helmet measured 1.8m.
He says that to this day he does not know how he managed to turn himself around
in order to close the hatch and finally drop back into the capsule to tell his
fellow Cosmonaut, Pavel Belyayev, what had happened. The whole spacewalk had
taken 12 minutes. It must have been the longest 12 minutes of Leonov’s life.
Leonov himself later painted this idealised picture of his spacewalk. |
Opposite the film of the Voskhod-1
mission is written the tragic tale
of what could happen when difficulties became too great to be overcome; and
what can happen when politicians put political ambitions ahead of safety.
Buoyed by the USSR’s successes in Spaceflight – the first satellite in Space;
the first animal; the first man; the first woman; the first crew; the first
spacewalk – the Politburo wanted to mark the fiftieth anniversary in 1967 of
the Bolshevik Revolution with another first: the first link-up of two
spacecraft in Space. It would be even better if this could coincide with the
anniversary of Lenin’s birthday on 22 April, and the May Day Holiday. They
chose to ignore the inconvenient fact that the new Soyuz spacecraft was not
ready. Sadly, the father of the rocket programme, Sergei Korolev, was no longer
around to stand up to them; he had died in January 1966 at the age of 59,
following an operation for a tumour.
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Statue in honour of all those who have died in the quest for Space exploration. |
In the end, at the Politburo’s
insistence, Soyuz-1 was launched in the early hours of 23 April 1967 with just
Komarov on board. In the original plan, he was to link up with Soyuz-2, and
would have been joined for the return trip by one of the three Cosmonauts that
mission was to be carrying. Problems began for Komarov almost immediately the
craft entered orbit. A solar panel failed to unfold, leaving the spaceship
short of power. As more and more defects showed up, it was decided to abandon
the mission. Soyuz-2 had already been grounded by technical problems which
prevented its launch. Incredibly, Komarov managed to cope with all of the
difficulties he faced; until the final two.
Firstly, the descent parachute
failed to open properly, which meant that when it should have been slowing down
for landing the spacecraft continued hurtling to Earth at a speed of around
140km per hour. Perhaps because of this the retro-rockets failed to fire;
presumably they had been programmed to fire at a certain time after the
parachute opened. Not only did Soyuz-1 smash into the ground at this great
speed, but after the impact which smashed the capsule and presumably
immediately killed Komarov, the retro-rockets fired and burnt to a cinder much
of what was left, including Komarov’s body. His charred remains are a ghastly
sight.
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