61 years ago, Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman cosmonaut in history. Her flight on the spacecraft "Vostok-6" became a world sensation, inspiring millions of women in the USSR and beyond. The issue of sending a woman into space was raised immediately after Yuri Gagarin's triumphant return from orbit. It was necessary to compare the effects of space conditions on the bodies of men and women, with a view to evaluating the possibility of sending civilian specialists into space. "Vostok-6" was in flight for 2 days, 22 hours, and 50 minutes, orbiting the Earth 48 times. On board the spacecraft, Tereshkova was alone (no other woman has ever flown in space alone). Simultaneously, "Vostok-5" piloted by cosmonaut Valery Bykovsky was also in orbit, with whom Tereshkova maintained radio contact. The first woman cosmonaut successfully completed her mission, including taking photographs of the horizon that were later used to detect aerosol layers in the atmosphere. Strict instructions were violated only after landing in the Altai region: once on the ground, she distributed tubes of space food to local residents and gladly enjoyed potatoes and kumys. The 26-year-old Tereshkova went to space as a lieutenant and returned as a captain. Three days after landing, she was also awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Subsequently, she was awarded the title of Hero of Socialist Labor of Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, Vietnam, and Mongolia, and became an honorary citizen of 18 Russian and foreign cities. Tereshkova became the 6th Soviet cosmonaut, the 12th person in space, and the youngest woman to have been in orbit.