Gagarin’s legendary flight into space still raises many questions, the answers to which remain unsolved.
The first launch of man into space was to happen earlier
Just a few years ago, researchers were able to find out that Yuri Alekseevich was supposed to go into space for the first time not on a fine April day, and a few months before - in December. This was stated in the Decree of the
Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of October 11, 1960. The start of the “East” in the winter was prevented by a tragic accident: on October 24, a military rocket fueled in Baikonur, not having time to start, exploded. As a result, 268 people died, among whom was Marshal Nedelin. Most people literally burned to death. Due to the fact that the State Commission threw all its forces into the investigation of this incident, Gagarin’s flight into space was postponed.
The equipment was only 50% reliable
Naturally, in Soviet times, this information was carefully hidden. However, the statistics speak for themselves: of the six test launches that preceded the launch of man into space, three had a tragic outcome. May 15, 1960, less than a year before Gagarin's space flight took place, the launched ship, due to a malfunction of the orientation system, never descended to the ground, and continues to fly to this day. On September 23 of the same year, a rocket exploded right at the start, with Krasavka and Damka dogs on board. On December 1, the launch was more successful: the Bee and Mushka dogs successfully started, but due to the fact that the descent trajectory at the end of the flight was too steep, the ship burned down along with the animals that were in it.
And this is not to mention the fact that the tragedies occurred not only in space, but also on Earth: during one of the trainings, V. Bondarenko, the youngest candidate for cosmonauts, died right in the sound chamber.
The place of the first astronaut could take Titov
America could not stand aside and with all its might tried first to launch a man into outer space. The tests were in full swing, however, in the West, instead of dogs, monkeys were passengers of missiles. The USA was looking forward to May 2, 1961 - after all, it was on this day that the most important first start was scheduled. However, Sergei Korolev could not allow the American to be the first person to go into space. Despite the 50/50 ratio, which did not give any guarantees at all that Yuri Alekseevich would return alive, the launch of the Soviet spacecraft was scheduled a few weeks earlier. In those days, the idea of replacing Gagarin, who had two small daughters, with the childless German Titov was seriously considered . However, Korolev insisted on the candidacy of Yuri Alekseevich and, in his own words, for the rest of his life he was proud that he was not mistaken in his choice.
In the first 20 seconds of the flight, the astronaut was in the greatest danger
Finally,
April 12, 1961 came — the date of Gagarin’s flight into space and one of the most significant events of the twentieth century. Most of all the risk was precisely the launch of the rocket. The flight scheme suggested various options for saving the astronaut at its various stages. Except the first 20 seconds. In the event of a launch vehicle explosion, the seat of Yuri Alekseevich would be catapulted to a height insufficient to open the parachute. It was for this purpose that the “emergency rescue system” was invented, which consisted of four large guys who were sitting not far from the start in a special shelter and holding a large nylon net ready. If an accident occurred, they would have to jump out of cover and catch the astronaut in the same way that firefighters catch people jumping from the upper floors of burning buildings.
The authorities prepared three appeals to the people at once
No one was sure that Gagarin’s flight into space would be successful. Therefore, three requests were prepared for TASS: in case the experiment ended successfully, the second - if the spacecraft could not enter orbit, and the third - about the tragic death of the astronaut.
If an emergency had already occurred in space, as a result of which the brake engines would have failed, the ship would have remained in orbit of the Earth. The Vostok was designed in such a way that, in a similar situation, the ship could “cling” to the upper atmosphere, slow down and land quietly or splash down somewhere. However, this would not happen in 1 hour, but on the 7-10th day. For this purpose, a reserve of water, food and air was created, which should have been enough for ten days.
The danger was also hidden in the fact that, despite many checks and days of preparation, the astronaut remained at risk of a mental breakdown. To prevent this from happening, Gagarin was ordered to constantly negotiate with the Earth. And he did it all 108 minutes of his flight.
Was rocket take-off a miracle?
Despite all the assurances of the Soviet authorities, the launch and the flight itself did not go according to plan. Emergencies repeatedly occurred . For example, at the very beginning the missile leakage sensor did not work. Because of this, a couple of minutes before the start, the designers were forced to untwist, and then screw back 32 bolts on the manhole cover. Following there was a failure on the communication line. Instead of the “5” signal, the number “3” suddenly went on, which meant that an accident had occurred on the ship. The aggregate compartment did not separate for a long time, which could lead to the ignition of a rocket, the valve of the spacesuit stuck and Gagarin did not suffocate by a miracle, while launching the ship began to tumble randomly ...
However, the flight ended successfully and became one of the most significant events in the history of the Cold War between the USSR and the USA, and in the history of mankind as a whole.
Mistakes with the landing of the "East" hid for many decades in a row
Soviet authorities claimed that Gagarin had landed in a given area. In fact, the scientists recalculated several times and none of the results turned out to be correct. In fact, Yuri Alekseevich landed, ejected from the ship, in the Saratov region. The first people who saw the astronaut were Anna Takhtarova, the wife of a forester, and her granddaughter Rita. Seeing a man in a strange suit, the old woman was initially frightened, but the astronaut reassured her, shouting: “Own, your, Soviet!”
So ended the flight of Gagarin into space. The year and day of this event - April 12, 1961 - undoubtedly, marked the beginning of a new era in the history of the development of mankind.