“Shame that we are not the first.” How the world press covered the flight of Tereshkova
Today celebrates the anniversary of the world’s first woman cosmonaut, hero of the Soviet Union Valentina Tereshkova. Her flight on the spaceship “Vostok-6” had excited the whole world. What the foreign press wrote about this historic event, the material Aephi.
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“The ideal Soviet heroine”
The spaceship “Vostok-6” was launched from “Gagarin” Baikonur cosmodrome on June 16, 1963, and the next day this was reported by almost all Newspapers of the world. Most of them put the materials about the latest achievement of the Soviet Union on the front pages, accompanied by large photos of Valentina Tereshkova.
In the first lines of your articles by foreign journalists were told about the personality of a woman cosmonaut, paying a lot of attention and her looks. Here’s what was said about it in the British newspaper The Guardian, which was published with the title “Russia has sent a woman into space”.
Valentina Tereshkova — a 26-year-old unmarried daughter of a tractor driver. According to residents of Western countries, it is similar to the actress Ingrid Bergman, though her features a little gestate Guardian
Many journalists called Tereshkova beautiful and attractive girl. But it is noteworthy that in the description of her appearance, there are differences, apparently caused by the lack of information and poor photos.
The article Texas edition of the Odessa American said that “miss Tereshkova — parachutist with brown hair, insisted on making its historic mission with the makeup.”
Some call her a brunette, but in most of the Newspapers said that she was a blonde. A journalist with The Ottawa Journal even noted in the title of his article, titled: “Valentines — red blonde in orbit”. The biographies of Tereshkova he stopped in great detail.
“Valentina Tereshkova went into space with the background necessary for the ideal Soviet heroine, according to canadian publishing. She worked at the plant, was the leader of Communist youth, and is now a member of the Soviet Communist party. Her father, who worked as a tractor driver, was killed during the Second World war. Her mother worked in a textile factory. Her brother works as a driver, and sister — spinner. She has a round Russian face and dimpled chin. She rarely uses lipstick. She has cropped curly hair.”
“World in rapture”
This was one of the subheadings of the article about the flight of Valentina Tereshkova, published in the Colombian newspaper El Tiempo, 18 July 1963. The next part of the text is interesting in that it is a South American journalist has made his own compressed overview of materials published on the eve of the Western press about the new space achievements of the USSR.
“The world has come in the rapture, deserves the feat of the Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova had flown into space on Board the “Vostok-6”, said El Tiempo. — British driver Jackie Moggridge stated that he would like to be in her place.
This feeling of envy, of course, has experienced hundreds of thousands of women around the world.
And here is what the North American press about this great event. In new York times says that the Russian made space for women. And in the new York Herald said that in the past women sweeping the streets, now you can wipe and Stardust”.
Although in those days the Soviet Union not only sent the first space woman. Just two days before its launch from the Baikonur cosmodrome launched the spaceship “Vostok-5” with Valery Bykovsky. In result some time they flew around the Earth for each other. The fact that the space for the first time were representatives of both sexes, is also very interested in foreign press.
Even in the headlines of some Newspapers, the emphasis is not on the flight Tereshkova, and on the fact that “tips” staged “space date” men and women.
The materials have been detailed, what is the distance between the astronauts, how many turns they made, as they will establish the relationship if they see each other, one of them had come back to Earth and so on. Also there were arguments about what the consequences for the Soviet space program might have this dual mission. Some publications speculated that it is directed to the first docking in space with the goal of establishing a permanent space station, which will be the starting point for expeditions to the moon.
The sixth number “one”
But still in the spotlight of the world press was Valentina Tereshkova. Newspapers in all parts of the world vying quoted her words received by radio. That’s how it was in the Australian The Sydney Morning Herald: “In Moscow heard the excited or enthusiastic cosmonaut voice, which said: “I am the Seagull… In the right window you see the horizon, see Land… I am the Seagull. All right, I feel fine. The technique works well.”
Paying tribute to Valentina, TASS said: “the Shining star was lit today in space. She outshines all the stars in the world, no matter how bright they may be,”.
In this paper, the statistics of space flight. The journalist recalled that Valentina Tereshkova became the twelfth man in space: “we are Flying six Russian and six Americans, even though all the achievements of Russian it was under the number “one”. Also they reported that the flight took place shortly before the opening in Moscow World Congress of women, which the Soviet press called “an important event in the struggle for peace in the world”.
Many quoted the text of the message which the Queen sent to Khrushchev: “I want to extend my warmest congratulations to you and through you — the first woman in space Valentina Tereshkova on her achievement. I wish her a successful flight”.
Thus any formal statements of other foreign leaders on this issue have not been published. But cited a lot of enthusiastic statements of scientists about the flight of Tereshkova. One of the Western scholars have suggested that women may be more suited for space travel than men. Canadian The Gazette gave a similar quote of a member of the USSR Academy of Sciences, the physiologist Lina stern: “This flight most convincingly demonstrates the special qualities that are inherent to the weaker sex. He argues that in this complex field of human activity women be equal to men”.
In the same newspaper it was said that the withdrawal of our cosmonaut into orbit made of Soviet women to “dance in offices, homes and other places.”
“Another proof that the Soviets are ahead”
But not all publications were enthusiastic. The incident painfully apprehended in the United States, which competed with the Soviet Union for leadership in space. The newspaper the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that the government and the Congress “surprised or concerned about” the fact that Russia sent the first woman into orbit. There was “deep frustration” of Americans who dream to participate in space flights.
“Shame that we didn’t do it first,” quoted The Philadelphia Inquirer the words of woman pilot from Oklahoma Jerry Cobb.
But especially emotionally, on this occasion, spoke the wife of the Senator from Michigan by the name of HART, unhappy with the lack of plans to send Americans into space.
“I’m going to go to the barn, to tell the story of my horse and listening to her laugh was quoted HART to the newspaper the Los Angeles Times. Probably, NASA will continue to maintain a wait and see position on the use of female astronauts, even if the Russian landed on the moon the whole of the Leningrad Symphony orchestra and will return it back.”
And Senator Stephen M. young called the incident another indication that “the Soviets beat us in space.” He added that he would not be surprised even if with Tereshkova Bykovsky “have swapped places in the ships.”
Also in American Newspapers expressed concerns about the likelihood of using new space achievements of the USSR for military purposes. For example, in The Daily Chronicle published an article with the telling title “For USA see two.”
“The military is closely monitoring the latest space enterprise in the Soviet Union. Some experts believe that the destruction of satellites in case of war will not be a difficult task. Joint flight of Tereshkova and Bykovsky will be of great importance in this regard. It could indicate that there is a way to replace the crews of ships to be used as space patrol and inspect orbital carriers of nuclear weapons.”
The foreign press had followed the fate of Tereshkova, reporting on every significant event of her participation. Now, as talked about honoring the first female astronaut in Moscow American Ocala Star Banner: “Premier Khrushchev’s bear hug and kissed Valentina Tereshkova on Saturday, when thousands of Russians came out to greet the first woman astronaut, and her partner, Lieutenant Colonel Valery Bykovsky. They just wanted to look at this pretty girl, which ended their 71-hour flight last Wednesday, making more than 48 orbits around the Earth. Khrushchev noted that it more than passed all the US astronauts put together.”
Source: RIA “Novosti”