On this day 60 years ago: Russian astronaut becomes first woman in space

On June 16, 1962, Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman to fly in space.

Tereshkova was launched alone aboard the Vostok 6 spacecraft and orbited the Earth 48 times in a flight that lasted 70 minutes shy of exactly three days.

The goal of the mission was to compare the impact of outer space on male and female bodies, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry. Her mission would be compared to the journey of cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, who two years prior to Tereshkova's mission, became the first person to travel into space. Tereshkova's mission was also to test if launching civilian specialists were possible in future missions.

During the mission, she took photos of the horizon, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. She was 26 when she completed the mission.

What did Tereshkova do after the mission?

Afterwards, Tereshkova did not fly again, but she later became a spokesperson for the Soviet Union.

She formerly had the rank of Lieutenant and was promoted to Captain after the mission. Other accolades include the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, becoming an honorary citizen of 18 Russian and foreign cities and was made a Hero of Socialist Labour of Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, Vietnam and Mongolia, according to the ministry.

A few months after her mission, Tereshkova married astronaut Andrian Nikolayev, and their daughter was a subject of interest because she was the first person born to parents that had both been exposed to space, according to NASA.

Now aged 86, Tereshkova is a member of the State Duma, which is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia. She is the sixth Soviet cosmonaut and the 12th person to travel to space.