The first in the world went into outer space. man in outer space

Alluring abyss, disturbing blackness and the beginning of the universe. As soon as people did not call space, but the essence was always the same - a person wanted to get into it. The first human spacewalk has become the main goal for a civilization that has mastered the latest technology. And on March 18, 1965, the dream became a reality. , while on the Vostok spacecraft, he stepped into the abyss and ended up as far from the Earth as none of the people of that time could manage. But what events preceded this?

Just a goal or reality?

Since Yuri Gagarin became the first in space, the world space race began, the main participants of which were the USA and the USSR. In a few years, both powers sent three ships into space, and now it was up to a small but extremely important step - to go into outer space. And on the way to solving this problem, there were many problems that countries understood and tried to solve.

The first thing that prompted the achievement of the goal was the problem of the possible repair of spacecraft, which would have to be carried out from the outside. It was obvious that no one except the cosmonauts would be able to cope with this task, which means that it was necessary to develop a system that would allow carrying out similar works. Human spacewalk was the only option. The USSR entrusted this task to the Queen, and Alexei Leonov became the main performing specialist. To solve the problem, a modified ship "Vostok" and a special spacesuit were used. By 1965, everything was ready and only the last steps remained to be taken.

Ship Upgrades

The first spacewalk would not have been possible without a reliable spaceship that could be in space long time and take on board several astronauts at once. This ship was the second version of Voskhod, on which three cosmonauts had already flown: Komarov, Feoktistov and Yegorov. But at that time they were so cramped in the cockpit that they had to not put on spacesuits, which threatened instant death at the time of a sudden depressurization of the ship. A new version received an inflatable airlock and free place for a flight of two people. As soon as the landing was made, inflatable bladder separated and the ship landed.

But the risk still remained, since there was less and less time and the United States was literally stepping on its heels, it was necessary to decide to launch the ship without checking all the systems. The situation was aggravated by the fact that exactly a month before the start of Leonov, a copy of the ship that made an unmanned flight was mistakenly destroyed. Blame it all - a command to self-destruct. The first manned spacewalk might not have taken place at all, but Korolev and Keldysh (the head of the USSR Scientific Academy) consulted with the astronauts and decided that the planned flight would happen exactly on time.

suit

Leonov's smile, captured in a spacesuit located in the Museum of Cosmonautics, immediately flew around all the newspapers of the world, but the efforts hidden behind it were not visible to anyone. The thing is that spacesuits were developed for the flight under the code name "Berkut". Engineers added an additional layer of airtight shell and placed a satchel with a life support system behind the astronaut's back. And to improve the reflective properties, the traditional orange color was changed, which was replaced by white. All these innovations seriously weighed down the already massive armor, bringing it to a figure of 100 kg.

Cosmonauts were trained in space suits. And then global shortcomings became clear. The vital system worked properly, but extremely weakly, because of this, the air supply was not enough, and with any movements, the person experienced weakness and began to sweat intensely.

It is worth adding to this the inconvenience of the design itself, due to which, for a simple clenching of the fist, it was necessary to strain and make an effort of 25 kilograms, it immediately becomes clear that the first astronaut in space did not experience the best feelings. Only to perform the simplest movements, constant training was required, so the astronauts often worked hard, but did not stop before their goal. It is worth noting that colleagues considered Leonov the strongest and most enduring of all, this is what made him key figure in the experiment.

Arrival of Charles de Gaulle

In order for the cosmonauts to go out into outer space, daily training sessions were held, in the midst of which Charles de Gaulle arrives and Khrushchev lights up with the idea to show off the achievements of the country and show France how the exit is being worked out. At that moment, the astronauts realized that the crew would include exactly those who would participate in the "performance". And then something happens that became the reason for Khrunov's long-term grievances against Gagarin. The latter decided to replace Khrunov with and did not explain his motives in any way.

Later, he said that Belyaev was supposed to receive last chance to fly into space, and the young and ambitious Khrunov will repeatedly get the opportunity to do this in his later life. In addition, it was Belyaev who suited Leonov much better in terms of psychological compatibility. But the fact remained - the offense was serious.

Space Threats

Those who first went into space were warned in advance about all the possible dangers that await them on the way to their cherished goal. This is both the possibility of losing contact with the ship, and the likelihood of a collision with space debris, which was in bulk even then, as well as the most unpleasant - death from lack of oxygen and the inability to return to the ship. Such unpleasant outcomes as overheating, hypothermia and radiation poisoning also persisted. But the cosmonauts and the leadership firmly stood their ground and stubbornly moved forward towards achieving the global dream.

It is worth noting that Leonov's spacewalk was also dangerous and the fragility of the structure connecting him with the ship. He was tied with a strong rope to two carabiners, one on him, the second on the deck, only this allowed him to return back. Rocket packs had not yet been invented.

No one took the danger of a collision with debris seriously, since at that time only 11 satellites and several ships had been in space, from which only small space debris remained, burning up in the layers of the atmosphere.

Steps to outer space

Space is still an extremely unexplored and dangerous area, but in 1965, only the laziest skeptic did not put forward his own theory regarding the failure of the Soviet spacewalk mission. Many people talked about the impossibility of taking a step outside the spacecraft, and if Leonov did make a spacewalk, he would instantly weld to the aircraft or go crazy. Indeed, it was hard to imagine what an unknown element could do with a small person, and each step could become a fatal mistake and failure of the USSR, but only practice could verify the guesses.

Passions were added by the fact of the absence of any rescue systems, which at that time, no one had yet invented. The only emergency measure was to allow a hatch to be opened through which one could stick one's hand out. But Leonov and Belyaev, the cosmonauts of the USSR, were not afraid of any difficulties, and as soon as the ship was able to enter orbit, Leonov prepared to leave. The fateful hour came, the astronaut pushed off from the ship and smoothly found himself in open space. The question "who was the first to go into outer space?" got a clear answer. USSR!

Trouble in flight

As soon as Leonov left the ship, his pulse was 164 beats per minute and everything was under control. He sailed away from the ship for a meter, then returned, and then moved as far away from the side as possible, turned to the cameras, online mode broadcasting everything that happens, and waved his hand to humanity. Levitan read out the message and reported "Belyaev and Leonov in space." 12 minutes and 9 seconds have passed. It was time to go back, and the trouble was just beginning.

The fact is that training as an astronaut includes working out various options unforeseen situations. Leonov constantly said that if you work out at least 1000 options, 1001 will definitely happen. And so it happened. Due to the excess pressure, the spacesuit swelled and the astronaut found himself enclosed in a large balloon, inflated from the inside. There was no more sense of support and no more tactile sensations. But then it was necessary to wind up the rope, take the camera and enter the hatch of the ship.

Leonov says: “I committed the biggest violation when I did not report my actions to Earth, but I knew that it was impossible to delay. I dropped the pressure almost twice, to 0.27, instead of the prescribed 0.5, and my hands immediately fell into place, the opportunity to work returned.

But it was impossible to hesitate, because nitrogen could begin to boil at any second, which means that the occurrence of decompression sickness was not far off. Belyaev saw that the shadow side was approaching, he understood that very soon no one would be able to help the cosmonaut and began to rush the pilot.

Leonov made several attempts to enter, but the airlock did not allow walking forward, as the instructions say, due to the fact that the suit was still inflated. It was necessary to act, because there was less and less oxygen. Leonov decided to break all the instructions and lowered the pressure to the limit, turned his head forward and pulled himself inside with his hands. After laying down, turned around and gave the order to batten down the hatch. As soon as air began to enter the chamber, Leonov completed the spacewalk.

Time to go home

As mentioned above, the ship did not pass a series of tests, which means that it had many problems that could prevent the completion of the mission, but none of this happened in space, but an emergency happened on the descent. During the shooting of the inflatable airlock, the stellar orientation sensors were stuck, the ship could not descend, during the 16th orbit around the planet, the USSR headquarters ordered to descend. And the ship began to enter the next turn, then it became clear that automatic orientation did not work and everything would have to be done manually. The flight threatened to end in tragedy.

Belyaev and Leonov are truly masters of their craft, who were able to regain control of the ship and their only mistake was the delay in turning on the engine, however, by only one minute, which as a result led to a sudden change in the landing site. Aircraft, together with the astronauts on board, who answered the whole world the question "who was the first to go into outer space?", ended up in the deaf winter forests Russia.

The rescue

The cosmonauts were in the forest for two days, they were found almost immediately and even tried to drop warm clothes from the helicopter, but a mistake was made and the bundle was lost in the snowdrifts. The rescuers had no way to land anywhere nearby. Trees interfered. But Leonov and Belyaev could not cut down trees or fill in the snow to create an impromptu landing site. The rescue group had to walk to the astronauts, who were approaching a cold death, and independently take them out of the thicket of the forest.

The triumph of the country is the triumph of mankind!

The flight and preparation for it were fraught with enormous difficulties, which, it seemed, could not be overcome by anyone. But the cosmonauts of the USSR did the impossible and coped with the task. They did what everyone tried to do, but no one could. We went out into outer space, making a fundamental step for all mankind. This event went down in the history of Soviet cosmonautics.

Leonov received a prestigious award from the International Aviation Federation - gold medal"Cosmos" and it will forever be remembered by history. Belyaev was awarded a medal and a diploma, and in the same way entered the milestones of history.

The feat of a thousand scientists, workers and millions ordinary people, was accomplished by only one person who was not afraid to go into the abyss, to be left alone with open space and look at the stars through only one thin glass, to hear the heart in the silence of silence and return back, under the applause of the whole world, inaccessible to him. Alexey Leonov is a great person!

60s of the 20th century - the time of the peak " cold war» two superpowers: the US and Soviet Union. The struggle is also being waged in the exploration of outer space. The first step is taken by the USSR, April 12, 1961 makes its first flight. The next step is the first man in outer space, who will take this height? Countries gave an answer to this question only after 4 years.

First man in outer space

The political and scientific battle was serious: Soviet cosmonauts and American astronauts made regular flights into outer space, but all the work was carried out inside the ship. And, finally, that historic day came when the USSR again took the lead. On March 18, 1965, the Soviet pilot-cosmonaut went into outer space.

The flight took place on the Voskhod-2 spacecraft. The commander was Leonov's partner -. Having reached orbit, the astronauts began to prepare. Aleksey Leonov put on a specially designed Berkut spacesuit, and Pavel Belyaev set about installing an airlock through which the exit was to take place. The chamber was cylindrical in shape and consisted of three compartments isolated from each other with 12 inflatable sections in each. When entering outer space, the lock chamber was depressurized.

As soon as the astronaut found himself in a vacuum inside the compartments, the countdown of his stay outside the ship began. The end of the spacewalk is considered to be the time when the airlock hatch was closed. Thus, the first spacewalk of Alexei Leonov lasted 23 minutes 41 seconds. He spent 12 minutes and 9 seconds completely out of the ship and camera. During this time, Leonov 5 times moved away from the ship and approached it. It was attached to Voskhod-2 with a special 5.35 m long halyard.

But not everything was so rosy. The Berkut suit was of a ventilation type with a total oxygen supply of 1666 liters. The air consumption per minute was 30-35 liters, depending on the astronaut's breathing rate, i.e. The supply of oxygen would be enough for a maximum of 45 minutes. When cosmonaut Leonov went out into open space, due to the difference in pressure, the spacesuit inflated. Returning to the ship, he realized that he could not pass through the lock, the inner diameter of which was only 1 meter.

At first, Alexei Leonov wanted to report what had happened to the headquarters on Earth, but decided not to waste precious time on this, because such situations had never arisen before, simply because he was the first cosmonaut to go into open space. Leonov made a decision that saved his life - he began to bleed oxygen from the spacesuit, thereby blowing it off. Gradually, the astronaut nevertheless returned back to the ship.

It was a victory! But, as always, trouble does not come alone. At first, Voskhod-2's orientation system failed, and Belyaev and Leonov had to steer the ship manually. Then, upon entering the Earth's atmosphere, the orbital module did not separate from the landing module. And until the connecting cable burned out, the astronauts rotated, experiencing an overload of up to 10G.

Due to all the technical difficulties, the landing took place far from the intended place. The team landed in the deep snowy taiga, 200 km north of Perm. At night the temperature reached -30 degrees. Rescuers reached the heroes only after 2 days.

It was a historic moment not only for the USSR, but for the whole world. The main pages of all newspapers were full of photos and stories about the achievements of Soviet cosmonauts Alexei Leonov and Pavel Belyaev. Both were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. In 2017, Alexei Arkhipovich Leonov turned 83 years old. He lives in Moscow. All his life, until his retirement, he devoted to cosmonautics, and also became an artist: together with the science fiction writer A. Sokolov, he created a series postage stamps on the topic "History of space". Unfortunately, Pavel Belyaev died in 1970 from an illness. He was only 44 years old.

First American in outer space

The Americans lagged behind the USSR by 2.5 months. The first spacewalk by a US astronaut took place on June 3, 1965. It was NASA astronaut Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Edward White. The flight was made on the Gemini-4 spacecraft. A ship of this type did not have an airlock, so depressurization of the entire ship was required to enter the open space.

The Americans considered the beginning of the spacewalk the moment when the astronaut's head protruded beyond the spacecraft, even if the rest of the body was still inside. The end of the spacewalk was the moment when the astronaut was completely inside Gemini 4. Thus, Edward White spent 36 minutes in outer space. 2 years after this event, at the age of 36, the astronaut died in a fire during the test of the Apollo 1 spacecraft and was posthumously awarded the NASA Distinguished Service Medal.

Since then, astronauts have regularly made spacewalks to get work done outside the spacecraft. Of course, such activity is risky. First of all, space debris poses a danger, a collision with which can cost the astronaut life or seriously damage the spacesuit. Dangerous and unintentional removal from the ship. To secure the work of space workers, scientists are working on the creation of robots that can perform actions outside the spacecraft without human intervention.

In astronautics, our country has always occupied a leading position: the first flight into space, the first spacewalk, the launch of the first artificial satellite Earth and the first artificial satellite of the Sun, even the launch of the first animal into space - the dog Laika. All this is our history and our pride!

In 2017, in memory of the feat of Alexei Leonov and Pavel Belyaev, Feature Film, based on real events, - "Time of the first". The main roles in it were played by and. In the film, you can see not only the technical facts of the flight itself and its preparation, but also the personal experiences of the characters and their families. And once again admire the heroism and courage of the great cosmonauts who made an invaluable contribution to space exploration.

The term "activity in outer space" (eng. Extra-vehicular activity, EVA) is broader and also includes the concept of leaving the ship on the surface of the Moon, planet or other space object.

Historically, due to differences in design features of the first spacecraft, the Americans and Russians define the moment of the start of spacewalks in different ways. From the very beginning, Soviet spacecraft had a separate airlock compartment, which is why the start of spacewalk is considered the moment when the astronaut depressurizes the airlock and finds himself in a vacuum, and its completion is the moment the hatch is closed. Early american ships they did not have an airlock, and when performing a spacewalk, the entire ship was depressurized. Under these conditions, the moment when the astronaut's head protruded beyond the spacecraft was taken as the beginning of the spacewalk, even if his body still continued to be inside the compartment (the so-called eng. Stand-up extra-vehicular activity, SEVA). Modern American yardstick takes the suit switch to self-powered as the start and the start of pressurization as the end of the EVA.

Spacewalks can be performed in different ways. In the first case, the astronaut is connected to the spacecraft with a special safety tether, sometimes combined with an oxygen supply hose (in this case it is called the “umbilical cord”), while simply the astronaut’s muscular efforts are enough to return to the spacecraft. Another option is a fully autonomous flight in outer space. In this case, it is necessary to ensure the possibility of returning to the spacecraft using a special technical system(See Installation for moving and maneuvering astronaut).

Encyclopedic YouTube

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✪ Astronaut talks about spacewalk

✪ Astronaut work in outer space

✪ Spacewalk by Gennady Padalka and Mikhail Kornienko

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Historical facts

• by the most long exit The American woman Susan Helms went out into outer space on March 11, lasting 8 hours and 56 minutes.
• The record for the number of exits (16) and for the total duration of stay (82 hours 22 minutes) in open space belongs to Russian cosmonaut Anatoly Solovyov.
• The first spacewalk in interplanetary space was performed by American astronaut Alfred Warden, a member of the crew of the Apollo 15 lunar expedition. Warden went into outer space to transfer the captured photographic films of the mapping and panoramic cameras from the service module to the command module.

The dangers of spacewalks

A potential danger is the possibility of loss or unacceptable removal from the spacecraft, threatening death due to the depletion of the supply of breathing mixture. Possible damage or punctures of spacesuits are also dangerous, the depressurization of which threatens with anoxia and quick death if the astronauts do not have time to return to the ship in time. The spacesuit damage incident occurred only once, when during the flight of Atlantis STS-37, a small rod pierced the glove of one of the astronauts. Luckily, depressurization did not occur, because the rod got stuck and blocked the hole that had formed. The puncture was not even noticed until the astronauts returned to the ship and began checking the suits.

It is significant that the very first rather dangerous incident happened already during the first spacewalk of an astronaut. Having completed the first exit program, Aleksey Arkhipovich Leonov experienced difficulties returning to the ship, since the swollen spacesuit did not pass through the Voskhod airlock. Only the release of the oxygen pressure in the spacesuit made it possible then to complete the flight safely.

Another potentially dangerous event occurred during the second spacewalk of the astronauts of the Discovery spacecraft (flight STS-121). A special winch detached from Piers Sellers' spacesuit, which helps to return to the station and prevents the astronaut from flying into outer space. Noticing the problem in time, Sellers and his partner were able to attach the device back, and the exit was completed safely.

While there are currently no known accidents associated with spacewalks, spacecraft developers are trying to reduce the need for extravehicular activity. The elimination of such a need, for example, when performing assembly work in space, can be helped by the development of special remote-controlled

Last year, a significant date was celebrated - the half-century anniversary of the first exit of an earthling into open space. Today, any schoolchild will name this person - Soviet cosmonaut No. 11, now Major General, twice Hero of the Soviet Union Alexei Arkhipovich Leonov, who accomplished his feat on March 18, 1965. Despite the fact that this event was largely political in color - the two powers of the USSR and the United States fought for leadership in space achievements, its significance cannot be overestimated.

Who was the first on behalf of the USSR went into outer space

Today, when tourist flights to low Earth orbit are becoming commonplace, a habitable planet constantly revolves around the Earth. space station with an international crew, it is difficult to imagine how much effort was required by scientists, engineers and ordinary workers to make the first stay of a man in open space.

For the flight of the crew consisting of commander P. I. Belyaev and a backup pilot, engineer-cosmonaut A. A. Leonov, a two-seat replica of the spacecraft of the Voskhod series was prepared, which not only differed significantly from Gagarin's Vostok - 1, but also had large design changes compared to the three-seat "Voskhod - 1". Especially for the exit and stay in open space, the design of the spacecraft provided for an inflatable chamber - the Volga airlock, and the cosmonauts' equipment consisted of a fundamentally new Berkut spacesuit. Exit according to plan
A. A. Leonov outside the "Voskhod - 2" was supposed to take place on the second orbit of the orbital flight.

The launch vehicle took place at the scheduled time from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Flying over the Sahara, the astronaut engineer began to prepare to leave the spacecraft. Much later, Alexei Leonov, either with irony or with a grin, recalled all the vicissitudes of this event.

In order to prevent the astronaut from flying away from the spacecraft, becoming an independent satellite of the Earth, the insurance system was made in the form of a clip-on halyard, the strength of which was repeatedly tested under terrestrial conditions. But either due to the usual Russian carelessness, or because of excitement, Alexei Arkhipovich forgot to fasten the halyard to the Voskhod-2 safety bracket, and only an additional check carried out by Pavel Belyaev made it possible to notice this error, which could cause - up to the loss astronaut.

The second drawback manifested itself in the discrepancy between the rigidity of the suit and the real space vacuum. Despite repeated checks on Earth, when returning inside the ship, the cosmonaut's "robe" "inflated" beyond the norm, and when climbing through the hatch, A. Leonov was forced to lower the pressure inside the "Berkut" below the set value.

One of the greatest events of the 20th century is the first flight and spacewalk of a man. The population of the planet learned from Gagarin that the Earth is round. Leonov became a pioneer. It turned out that the first people in space were from the USSR. On March 18, 1965, Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov made the first spacewalk from the Voskhod-2 spacecraft. This event was followed by the whole country. Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov was outside the Voskhod-2 spacecraft for only 12 minutes, but these minutes have gone down in the history of cosmonautics forever. You will learn about how the preparations for the first spacewalk took place, what difficulties the crew of the spacecraft experienced in this article.

Preparations for the first human spacewalk

The idea that it is possible for a man to go into outer space came to Korolev as early as 1963. The designer suggested that soon such an experience would not only be desirable, but absolutely necessary. He turned out to be right. In the following decades, astronautics developed rapidly. For example, maintaining the normal operation of the ISS in general would have been impossible without external installation and repair work, which once again proves how necessary the first manned spacewalk was. The year 1964 was the beginning of official preparations for this experiment. But then, in 1964, in order to implement such a daring project, it was necessary to seriously consider the design of the ship.

Voskhod-2 spacecraft

As a result, the well-proven Voskhod-1 was taken as the basis. One of its windows was replaced with an exit lock, and the crew was reduced from three to two. The lock chamber itself was inflatable and located outside the ship. After the completion of the experiment, before landing, she had to separate herself from the hull. This is how the Voskhod-2 spacecraft appeared.

suit

The created suit became a real miracle of technology. According to the firm belief of its creators, it was a product more complicated than a car

Especially for Voskhod-2, special spacesuits were developed, which bore the formidable name Berkut. They had an additional sealed shell, and a satchel with a life support system was placed behind the cosmonaut's back. For better light reflection, even the color of the suits was changed: white was used instead of the traditional orange. The total weight of the Berkut was about 100 kg. the suits were very uncomfortable. They were so dense that in order to clench the hand into a fist, it was necessary to apply an effort of almost 25 kilograms. To be able to make any movement in such clothes, he had to constantly train. The work was worn out, but the astronauts stubbornly went to the cherished goal - to make it possible for a man to go into outer space. Leonov, by the way, was considered the strongest and most enduring in the group, which largely predetermined him leading role in the experiment.

Later, cosmonaut Alexei Leonov recalled:

For example, to squeeze a hand in a glove, a force of 25 kg was needed.

The color of the suit has also changed. "Berkut", in order to better reflect the sun's rays, was made white, not orange. A special light filter appeared on his helmet, which was supposed to protect the astronaut's eyes from bright sunlight.

The crew of the Voskhod-2 spacecraft

It was not immediately decided on whom to entrust this responsible mission. Multiple tests have been carried out on psychological compatibility. After all, the crew must act as a single mechanism.
Belyaev is self-possessed and cool-headed and could quickly make decisions in non-standard situations. Leonov, his complete opposite, is hot and impetuous, but very brave and courageous. These two are different person made an excellent tandem for the experiment.
For 3 months, the cosmonauts got acquainted with the structure of the new spacecraft. The spacewalk training was carried out on board the Tu-104 aircraft, in which a life-size model of the Voskhod-2 spacecraft was installed. Every day, Soviet cosmonauts ran cross-country skis or cross-country skis, intensively engaged in weightlifting and gymnastics.

Cosmonauts Pavel Belyaev and Alexei Leonov

From the memoirs of Alexei Leonov about preparing for a spacewalk: “On Earth, we carried out tests in a pressure chamber with a vacuum corresponding to an altitude of 60 km ... In reality, when I went into space, it turned out a little differently. The pressure in the suit is about 600 mm, and outside - 10 - 9; it was impossible to simulate such conditions on Earth ... "

At that moment, when Alexei Leonov climbed out of his spaceship on March 18, 1965 and saw himself at an altitude of 500 kilometers above the surface of our planet, he did not feel movement at all. Although in fact he was rushing around the Earth at a speed that was many times higher than the speed jet aircraft. A panorama of our planet that no one had seen before opened before Alexei - like a giant canvas, which was saturated with contrasting textures and colors, alive and bright. Alexey Leonov will forever remain the first person who was able to see the Earth in all its splendor.

The Soviet cosmonaut at that moment simply took his breath away:

It's hard to even imagine what it was. Only in space can one feel the greatness and giant size human environment environment - on Earth you will not feel this

In outer space, Alexei Leonov began to carry out the observations and experiments envisaged by the program. He made five exits and approaches from the lock chamber, with the very first withdrawal made at a minimum distance - one meter - for orientation in new conditions, and the rest for the full length of the halyard. All this time, the spacesuit was maintained at “room” temperature, and its outer surface was heated in the sun to +60°C and cooled in the shade to -100°C. Pavel BELYAEV, using a camera and telemetry, monitored the work of the co-pilot in space and was ready, if necessary, to provide the necessary assistance to him.

At that moment, when Alexei Leonov saw the Yenisei and the Irtysh, he received a command from the commander of the ship Belyaev to return back. But Leonov did not manage to do this for a very long time. It turned out that his spacesuit in a vacuum was greatly swollen. So much so that the astronaut simply could not squeeze into the hatch of the airlock, and there was no time to consult with the Earth about this situation. Leonov made attempt after attempt, but they all ended in vain, and the supply of oxygen in the spacesuit was enough for only 20 minutes, which inexorably melted away (the astronaut spent 12 minutes in space). In the end, Alexei Leonov decided to simply relieve pressure in his spacesuit and, contrary to the instructions issued, instructing him to enter the airlock with his feet, he decided to "swim" into it face first. Fortunately, he succeeded. And although Leonov spent only 12 minutes in outer space, during this time he managed to get wet as if a whole tub of water had been poured on him - the physical load was so great.

Photo of the first human spacewalk

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Video of the first human spacewalk with video footage inserts

Feature film "Time of the First"

The heroism of the crew members of the Voskhod-2 spacecraft inspired the creative team of Timur BEMKAMBETOV and Yevgeny MIRONOV to create a large-scale production film project, the heroic drama Time of the First, dedicated to one of the most risky expeditions into orbit and Alexei LEONOV's spacewalk

Documentary film by the Roscosmos television studio “Alexey Leonov. Jump into space"

The film is dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the first cosmonaut who went into outer space.

Interesting facts about the first human spacewalk

• Critical situation during exit from orbit. The crew of Voskhod-2 could have been the first crew to die while returning from orbit. Refused before boarding automatic system orientation. Belyaev manually oriented the ship and turned on the brake engine. As a result, Voskhod landed in the taiga (180 km north of the city Perm). In the TASS report, this was called "landing in the 'reserve area'", which in fact was the remote Permian taiga. After landing, the huge canopy of the parachute, stuck on two tall fir trees, fluttered in the wind. Soon an IL-14 was already circling above them. Radio contact was immediately established from the aircraft and the astronauts were informed that they had been found and help would be sent soon. The astronauts spent the night in the forest. Helicopters could only fly over them and report that “one is chopping wood, the other is putting it on the fire.” Warm clothes and food were dropped from helicopters to the cosmonauts, but Belyaev and Leonov could not be pulled out of the taiga. From the memoirs of Leonov: “When we landed, they didn’t find us right away ... We sat in spacesuits for two days, we didn’t have other clothes. On the third day we were pulled out of there. Because of the sweat, my suit was knee-deep in moisture, about 6 liters. So in the legs and bubbling. Then, already at night, I say to Pasha: "Well, that's it, I'm cold." We took off our suits, stripped naked, wrung out our underwear, put it back on. Then the screen-vacuum thermal insulation was sporulated. They threw away all the hard part, and put the rest on themselves. These are nine layers of aluminized foil, covered with dederon on top. Parachute lines were wrapped around the top like two sausages. And so they stayed there for the night. And at 12 noon a helicopter arrived and landed 9 km away. Another helicopter in a basket lowered Yura Lygin directly towards us. Then Slava Volkov (Vladislav Volkov, future cosmonaut of TsKBEM) and others came to us on skis. They brought us warm clothes, poured cognac, and we gave them our alcohol - and life became more fun. The fire was lit, the boiler was put on. We washed. In about two hours they cut down a small hut for us, where we spent the night normally. There was even a bed
• The day before the start there was a big trouble. Due to the negligence of a security guard, an inflatable airlock, hung out of the ship to check the tightness, unexpectedly fell and broke. There was no spare, and therefore it was decided to use the one on which for a long time astronauts trained. This incident could have turned out to be fatal, but, fortunately, everything worked out, the reused airlock survived, and the first manned spacewalk successfully took place.

The dangers of spacewalks

Spacewalks are dangerous for many different reasons. The first is the possibility of a collision with space debris. The orbital speed at an altitude of 300 km above the Earth (typical flight altitude of manned spacecraft) is about 7.7 km/s. This is 10 times the speed of a bullet, so kinetic energy a small particle of paint or a grain of sand is equivalent to the same energy of a bullet with 100 times the mass. With each spaceflight, more and more orbital debris is introduced, which is why this problem continues to be the most dangerous.


A potential danger is the possibility of loss or unacceptable removal from the spacecraft, threatening death due to the depletion of the supply of breathing mixture. Also dangerous are possible damage or punctures of spacesuits, the depressurization of which threatens with anoxia and rapid death if the astronauts do not have time to return to the ship in time.

On October 20, 1965, the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) marked the record for a man to stay in open space outside of a ship - 12 minutes and 9 seconds. Alexey Leonov received the highest award FAI - the gold medal "Cosmos" for the first spacewalk in the history of mankind. Crew commander Pavel Belyaev also received a medal and a diploma.

Leonov became the fifteenth person in space, and the first person to take the next fundamental step after Gagarin. To be alone with the abyss, the most hostile space for a person, to look at the stars only through the thin glass of a helmet, to hear the beating of your heart in absolute silence and go back is a real feat. A feat behind which stood thousands of scientists, engineers, workers and millions of ordinary people, but it was accomplished by one person - Alexei Leonov.