Russia is marking the 50th anniversary of the first spaceflight by a woman, Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova. She made international headlines on June 16, 1963, when her Vostok-6 space capsule blasted off. She successfully completed 48 orbits around the Earth in a space flight lasting nearly three days. (16 PHOTOS)
Russia Marks 50th Anniversary Of First Woman In Space
![Valentina Tereshkova completed 48 orbits of the Earth in June 1963.](https://gdb.rferl.org/1ac50d2c-394d-4574-8e27-f34f94380595_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Valentina Tereshkova completed 48 orbits of the Earth in June 1963.
![Tereshkova with cosmonaut Yury Gagarin, the first man in space, at Lenin’s mausoleum in Red Square in 1963](https://gdb.rferl.org/80424deb-21a5-4eb3-b0f3-75feb3f41d6a_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Tereshkova with cosmonaut Yury Gagarin, the first man in space, at Lenin’s mausoleum in Red Square in 1963
![Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev (center) with Tereshkova and cosmonaut Valery Bykovsky in 1963. Bykovsky holds the endurance record for a solo space flight. He spent five days in orbit.](https://gdb.rferl.org/47648602-dba9-4e47-9a78-c35bc658c521_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev (center) with Tereshkova and cosmonaut Valery Bykovsky in 1963. Bykovsky holds the endurance record for a solo space flight. He spent five days in orbit.
![Tereshkova and Yury Gagarin pose with various Soviet honors in 1963.](https://gdb.rferl.org/a22bb27a-d5c6-4873-8311-91eb43808a40_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Tereshkova and Yury Gagarin pose with various Soviet honors in 1963.
![Tereshkova visits Prague on a victory tour following her flight in 1963.](https://gdb.rferl.org/1619891b-1498-4e3c-a499-a2cfff096dca_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Tereshkova visits Prague on a victory tour following her flight in 1963.
![A matchbox label from 1963 featured a portrait of Tereshkova.](https://gdb.rferl.org/cbc8b1fc-bc0a-4ef0-8e5d-7f7250d845d4_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A matchbox label from 1963 featured a portrait of Tereshkova.
![Tereshkova with her daughter Elena in January 1971](https://gdb.rferl.org/9a372395-7e27-424c-96a3-def88ec50b50_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Tereshkova with her daughter Elena in January 1971
![Then-President Vladimir Putin meets with Tereshkova in March 2007.](https://gdb.rferl.org/406f888b-933b-4268-a56f-2685908a4b5b_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Then-President Vladimir Putin meets with Tereshkova in March 2007.
![Then-President Vladimir Putin honors Tereshkova with the Order for Service for the Fatherland in May 2007.](https://gdb.rferl.org/a014e08e-5e02-4c29-b45f-6b9661b14800_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Then-President Vladimir Putin honors Tereshkova with the Order for Service for the Fatherland in May 2007.
![An election billboard for Tereshkova, who ran successfully for a seat in the State Duma with the ruling United Russia party in February 2008](https://gdb.rferl.org/11cc374f-f2d6-45bb-b840-5714efe45131_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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An election billboard for Tereshkova, who ran successfully for a seat in the State Duma with the ruling United Russia party in February 2008