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Aviation History
1963
1963 - 1023.PDF
„-:,,,. .. .... . ... .... • , •: 992 FLIGHT International, 20 June 1963 Missiles and Spaceflight WOMAN IN SPACE "On June 16,1963, at 12.30 p.m. Moscow Time (9.30 a.m. GMT) a spaceship Vostok 6 was launched into the orbit of an Earth satellite in the Soviet Union, piloted, for the first time in history, by a woman, citizen of the Soviet Union, Cosmonaut Comrade Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova." So began a Tass statement last week. The flight began with the launch into Earth orbit of Vostok 5 carrying Lt Col Valery Fedorovich Bykovsky at 3 p.m. Moscow Time (noon GMT) on Friday, June 14. The craft was stated to have been placed in orbit at 65° inclination at 181-235 km, with a period of revolution of 88.4min, and the purpose was quoted as:— (1) To continue studies of the influence of different factors of space flight on a human organism, (2) To carry on extensive medico-biological research in conditions of a long flight, and (3) Further adjustment and improvement of the piloting systems of a spaceship. Announcing the launch of Vostok 6 on June 16, Tass gave the orbital elements as 65° inclination, 183-233km height and 88.3min period. The purpose of the flight, the agency stated, was "to continue the study of the effect of various factors of space flight on the human organism, among them a comparative analysis of the influence of these factors on the organism of a man and a woman; to carry out new medico-biological research; and further to improve the systems of spaceships piloted in joint flight." At the time of going to press both craft were still in orbit; a fuller report of the joint flight will appear next week. MERCURY COMPLETED Last week's space news from the USA included a statement by NASA Administrator James Webb on June 12 that there would be no further flights in the Mercury programme; and an announce ment on the same day of the forthcoming resignation of Mr D. Brainerd Holmes, Director of NASA's Office of Manned Space Flight. Fuller reports will appear in next week's issue. SOVIET SPACE OMISSIONS The existence of four Earth satellites launched secretly by the Soviet Union and first disclosed by Flight International was con firmed on June 6 by Mr Adlai Stevenson, US ambassador to the United Nations, in a letter to UN Secretary-General U Thant. Mr Stevenson also referred to the launching of two other Russian satellites (earlier announced by NASA Administrator James E. Long haul: the first Blue Streak for the European Launcher Development Organization programme began its journey to Woomera on June (7. Here seen at Stevenage prior to being crated and taken by road to London docks, the stage was shipped as deck cargo aboard the cargo ship "Nardana," bound for Adelaide Webb) which similarly had not been announced by the Soviet Union. Mr Stevenson's letter followed a statement filed with the UN by Soviet Ambassador Fedorenko entitled "Dangerous United States activities in Outer Space." This statement dealt mainly with the West Ford project and, in the US Government's opinion quoted by Mr Stephenson, "contains so many distortions and is so at variance with the facts as to require correction." After referring to West Ford, and to high-altitude nuclear tests which had been conducted but not announced by the Soviet Union, Mr Stevenson's letter continued:— "On a related subject, I would like to call attention to the failure of the Soviet Union on a number of occasions to comply with existing arrangements to register with the United Nations, under General Assembly resolution 1721(XV1), the launching of all objects into orbit or beyond. In reviewing registration data sub mitted by the USSR, the United States has observed that a number of space vehicles launched into Earth orbit by the USSR have been omitted. These omissions occurred in the Soviet submissions of December 21, 1962 and of April 19, 1963. Now, in its latest registration on May 11, 1963, the USSR has failed to correct these earlier omissions. The proper international designations for these six space vehicles in question are as follows:— 1962 Alpha Pi launched on August 25 1962 Alpha Tau launched on September 1 1962 Alpha Phi launched on September 12 1962 Beta Iota launched on October 24 1962 Beta Xi launched on November 4 1963-1 launched on January 4 "All six space vehicles listed above achieved Earth orbit and clearly fall within the provisions of General Assembly resolution 1721 (XVI), which calls upon States launching objects into orbit or beyond to file information promptly through the United Nations for the registration of launchings. "In the Soviet Union's first submission of information to the United Nations on March 24, 1962, it was pointed out that'. . . in the opinion of the Soviet Union, the information furnished to the United Nations for registration will be of real value if the countries concerned will register now and will continue to register all the artificial satellites of the Earth placed in orbit and other objects launched into outer space.' Moreover, the USSR also stated at that time its understanding that launching data would be registered "... in the chronological order of launchings.' "The United States in its submissions for the United Nations registry therefore left gaps in the sequential numbering of inter national designations on the assumption that the Soviet Union would report the six space vehicles in question. To date the USSR has not done so, although all six were, in fact, launched into Earth orbit by the Soviet Union ..." The first two launchings mentioned in Mr Stevenson's letter were first announced by Mr James E. Webb, NASA Administrator, on September 6,1962, as unsuccessful Venus probes. The other four launchings were reported by Flight International in the following two issues :— November 22, 1962. "At least three spacecraft have been launched in recent months without any announcement by the launching country. The deduction from available information is that these are probably Soviet satellites or space probes . . . "The first of these, designated 1962 Alpha Phi .. . was launched between September 1 and 17—apparently on September 10 or 12 ... "The second 'unadopted' satellite was launched between October 20 and 26 and the third between November 1 and 5." January 17,1963. "The obscuring of basic facts of space activity, a process started by the US Defense Department at the end of 1961 and continued with the active co-operation of the Soviet Union throughout 1962, got off to a good start in 1963 with the launching of an unidentified satellite by an unidentified country during the first week of the new year. On the evidence available at the time of going to press, it appears that the object launched was a Soviet Earth satellite . . ." The main piece of new information in the Stevenson letter is the confirmation of the launch date of 1962 Alpha Phi and the disclosure of the launch dates of 1962 Beta Iota, 1962 Beta Xi and 1963-1.
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