Humans in Space
Ever since ancient times, humans have wanted to know more
about the skies above them. They invented stories to explain the
presence of the stars, the Moon and the Sun. Today, advanced
technology helps us to travel into space and expand our
knowledge about the world beyond our planet.
Quick Q’s:
1. What was the
first living being to
orbit Earth?
The first creature to
orbit the Earth was
a dog named Laika,
aboard the Russian
spacecraft Sputnik 2
on 3 November 1957.
2. Who was the first
person in space?
On 12 April 1961,
Russian cosmonaut
Yuri Gagarin was the
first person to travel
in space, aboard the
spacecraft Vostok 1.
Gagarin orbited the
Earth once on this
historic flight, which
lasted 1 hour and
48 minutes.
3. Which was the first
ever space station?
Salyut 1 was the first
space station. It
was launched on
19 April 1971.
Q How do space shuttles fly into space?
A A space shuttle consists of two rocket
boosters, three engines, an external fuel tank
and two smaller fuel tanks. It also has an
orbiter, which puts the shuttle into orbit.
The rockets are used to propel the shuttle
into space. When the shuttle is about 45
kilometres (28 miles) high, the rockets fall off
into the ocean and the three main engines
of the shuttle take over. Just before the shuttle
goes into orbit, its engines are shut down and
the external fuel tank is discarded.
Q Why can’t I fly into space in
an aeroplane?
A All objects, even aeroplanes, are glued
to the surface of the Earth by gravity. If you
wanted to escape this unseen force, you would
have to travel at a speed of at least 40,000
kilometres per hour (25,000 miles per hour).
Only space shuttles are designed to achieve
this speed. A mixture of liquid hydrogen fuel
and liquid oxygen is burned under high
pressure to help the shuttle’s rockets reach
this speed and push it out of the Earth’s
atmosphere into orbit.
Q Is there no gravity in space?
A All objects in space exert some
gravitational force on each other. However,
the gravitational force exerted by some
objects, like the Moon, is much less than that
of the Earth. When humans are in space they
float around in the air, because there is
not enough gravity to keep their feet on
the ground.
First woman in space
Valentina Tereshkova was
the first woman in space,
aboard Vostok 6 on
16 June 1963.
Weightless games
On board a spacecraft, astronauts dance in zero gravity,
as one colleague holds down a keyboard to play it.
Take off
These three images show the space shuttle at its base
(left), at the moment of take off (centre) and on its way
to space (right).
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