Valentina Tereshkova

First woman in space who shattered gender barriers in space exploration

Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova (born 1937) made history on June 16, 1963, when she became the first woman to travel to space aboard Vostok 6. Her 70-hour orbital mission - longer than all American Mercury astronauts combined at that time - proved women's physical and psychological capability for spaceflight.

Selected from 400 candidates despite having no pilot training (she was a textile worker and amateur parachutist), Tereshkova's mission:

• Collected crucial data on female body response to space conditions
• Tested spacecraft systems during formation flight with Vostok 5
• Captured iconic photographs of Earth's horizon vital for atmospheric studies

Post-mission, she became a global ambassador for women in STEM, earning the United Nations Gold Medal of Peace in 2006. Despite political challenges in later career, Tereshkova's pioneering flight opened doors for female astronauts worldwide, including NASA's 1978 class with Sally Ride.