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Aviation History
1962
1962 - 1639.PDF
FLIGHT International, 30 August 1962 305 Vostok 2 on which our space friends Yury Alekseyevich Gagarin and H. S. Titov blazed the first trail into outer space. However, there are no fundamental differences in the structure. The fulfilment of the flight programme was preceded by two im portant and independent stages of preparatory work: one consisted of a general training course for space pilots, and the other was a specific programme of preparation for this particular flight. The general training course included" the study of theoretical subjects and work in the field of special physical, medical-biological, tech nical and flying training and practice. The specific preparation for the flight followed a special pro gramme, and this was based on the following principles: training in the various elements of the flight in a special simulator of the Vostok spaceship type; physical training to remain in form, medical- biological tests; flying practice; training in the use of communica tion, and so on. The elements of the flight were gone through on the simulator for each circuit in a concrete manner. On the basis of the experience of Herman Stepanovich Titov in controlling his ship, we went through the elements of manual control on the simulator, and trained in getting out of and into the seat for weightlessness exercises sus pended in the cabin of the ship. The simulator made it possible to Nikolayev during the conference go through all the elements of the assignment in full, and in flight we did not have to give any thought to carrying them out. The presence on board the ship of ultra-shortwave and shortwave receivers and transmitters made it possible to establish communica tions between the ships, and the presence of a broadcast receiver and of individual means of communication essential for the main tenance of communication on the descent section and after landing, and also for co-operation with the ground control points of the flight, required serious training in that sphere. Practical training on these questions and the study of the programme of radio voice communications made it possible in flight to maintain continuous communication between the ships and with the command points. We knew with whom we were maintaining communication for every moment of the flight, as our comrades, pilot-cosmonauts, were at the flight control points. Their familiar voices gave us added strength, cheerfulness and confidence in the execution of the assignment. We knew that our comrades who had the flight data could extend help at any minute. Flying training in this period included flights reproducing the conditions of weightlessness and practice in parachute landings with full equipment, that is, in a space suit with an emergency supply and with the means of communication and a food store. There was daily physical training and daily supervision of our condition by the doctors, whose system of training, designed specifically for the purpose, enabled us to cope fully with our flight Programme. As you already know, I took off in the spaceship Vostok 3 at 1 1.30 in the morning, Moscow time, on August 11 and went success fully into orbit, the orbit being very close to the one calculated. The initial duration of Vostok 3 's circuit round the Earth was 88.5mi n; the minimum and maximum distances from the surface of the Earth were 183 and 251km respectively; and the orbital plane was inclined to the equatorial plane at an angle of 65 \ My space brother, Pavel Popovich, took off the following day— that is, on August 12, 1962—at 11.02 Moscow time, aboard the spaceship Vostok 4. It is worthy of admiration that the spaceships Vostok 3 and Vostok 4 were put into orbit with exceptional pre cision, both in time and position. After Vostok 4 had been put into orbit, our spaceships were very close to each other and we were, so to say, ready to shake hands and congratulate each other on this success. The considerable angle of inclination of the orbital plane to the equatorial plane enabled us to enjoy the sight of all the continents of the globe. The main objectives of this first group flight were the following: to obtain additional information about the effects of space flight on the human organism; to study the human capacity to work in the weightless condition; to carry out a definite amount of scientific research in conditions of space flight; the further development of the spaceship systems, means of communication, control and landing; experimenting to obtain information about the possibility of establishing direct communication between spaceships in a group flight; co-ordinating the actions of space pilots and verifying the effect of identical space conditions on human organisms . . . Throughout the flight I had steady and firm communications with the Earth. I heard the voices of my cosmonaut friends, who sent me the necessary data. What joyful feelings I experienced at the end of the first day of my flight when the Vostok 4 spaceship, piloted by my friend—or, as they say now, cosmic brother, twin— Pavel Popovich, came into orbit alongside. We immediately set up two-way radio communication, found out how the other was feeling and wished each other a happy flight. It is difficult to convey how fine it is to fly together in space, knowing one's friend is along side . . . When preparing for our space flight lasting several days, I ex pected that I should have to experience discomfort due to the reac tion of the vestibulary apparatus through the weightless condition. However, neither during the first nor the fourth day, nor at any time throughout my four-day flight did 1 experience any discomfort due to the vestibulary apparatus, and neither did Pavel Popovich. Moreover, when conducting the first vestibulary exercises in outer space 1 was cautious, and tried to turn my head simply as instructed and to move my eyes strictly as envisaged. But when 1 failed to experience any unpleasant sensation, 1 began to increase the effect on the vestibulary apparatus in excess of the programme and made scores of quick turns of the head one way and the other, moved about the cabin in various directions and rotated about my longi tudinal axis while floating about the cabin. The results were always the same. There were no unpleasant sensations. Nor did we suffer from loss of appetite. We took our meals strictly according to schedule, and the meals were very tasty; the food was very good, our taste had been taken into consideration ... We also worked strictly according to schedule, conducted observa tions, and slept. 1 must say that one sleeps very well in outer space. I felt completely refreshed after six hours' sleep, although the schedule called for eight hours' sleep. The first night I woke up three times, the second, third and fourth night I always woke up without an alarm-clock at two in the morning. But according to schedule I was supposed to wake up at four o'clock. 1 would look at the time and go back to sleep. One sleeps very well. On the second day I woke up at exactly two minutes to four. The following day—the third day—however, I had woken up at exactly four o'clock without the alarm-clock, and the last day I woke up ten minutes later and, instead of finding myself over our territory, found myself over North America. We also made some very interesting observations. From outer space one had a clear view of coastlines. One could also see the contours of towns, and at night this was facilitated by the illumina tion of the towns. One could see the contours of the towns and even streets. At night one could also observe storms on the ground. There was a full Moon during our flight, and the Moon was a beautiful sight. It looks spherical, much more so than when seen from the ground. The first time I saw it in the porthole I was so excited 1 wanted to take a picture immediately. I was afraid I would miss it. But then, on subsequent circuits, the Moon was always there and I had ample opportunity to take pictures of it. The moonlight illuminated the cabin so well that one could see the switches and apparatus without any additional illumination. I also had a quick view of one of the constellations—Orion. I told Pavel Romanovich, there and then, that I saw Orion through my right-hand porthole, and he said that he saw this constellation too.
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