First Woman in Space
Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman in space aboard Vostok 6
June 16, 1963
Valentina Tereshkova Reaches Orbit
On June 16, 1963, Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova launched aboard Vostok 6 and became the first woman to travel to space. She orbited Earth 48 times over nearly three days before returning safely. Tereshkova was not a trained pilot — she was a factory worker and amateur parachutist selected through a national recruitment program. She applied to the program herself after reading about the Soviet space missions and completed pilot training in just two years.
The Mission and Its Political Context
Tereshkova's flight was timed partly for its propaganda value. The Soviet Union wanted to show the world that its space program was more progressive than the United States'. The U.S. would not send a woman to space until Sally Ride flew on the Space Shuttle in 1983 — twenty years later. Tereshkova performed scientific observations during her flight and reported on how she coped with the conditions of space. After returning, she became a celebrity and a national hero in the Soviet Union.
A Legacy That Inspired Generations
After her spaceflight, Tereshkova became an ambassador for science and women's education. She earned a doctorate in engineering, served in the Soviet legislature, and remained a public figure for decades. In 2013, on the 50th anniversary of her flight, she offered to fly a one-way mission to Mars if given the chance. Her journey in 1963 proved that women could handle the rigors of spaceflight and opened a door that, once opened, could never be fully closed again. Use our age calculator to see how old Tereshkova is today.