Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov: biography (photo)

In our country and throughout the world, the name of cosmonaut Leonov is well known. Alexei Leonov was the first in the open space to make a video, leaving the spaceship. In this article we will tell you how it was and why he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for accomplishing such a seemingly simple task. Also we will tell, why for this mission Sergey Korolev chose it. The biography of Alexei Leonov is the fate of an ordinary Soviet man from the simplest family.

Childhood

Alexei Leonov was born in 1934 in the Siberian village of Listvyanka, which is located in the Kemerovo region. A large family, in which he was the eighth child, was engaged in peasant labor. Father, electrician-railwayman from Donbass, after the end of the civil war moved to Siberia to his father, the grandfather of the future cosmonaut, and began to work as a livestock specialist. Mother settled in these places before. Alexei Leonov's grandfather was exiled to these places for his participation in the revolutionary events of 1905.

The father of the future cosmonaut, Arkhip Leonov, an intelligent man and a great hard worker, earned respect among his fellow villagers and was elected by them chairman of the village council. The wave of repression did not bypass this family. His father was repressed in 1936, but in 1939 he was restored to rights and fully justified.

Little is known about his parents' family and childhood. Let's hope that he leaves behind a detailed book of memories.

In 1938, Alexei's mother moved to Kemerovo. In the same place, when he grew up, he went to school. The first-grader was nine years old.

In 1948 the family moved to a permanent place of residence in the new, western region of the Soviet Union. Kaliningrad became a native city for Alexei Arkhipovich. His relatives live there today. In one of the public gardens in the central part of the city there is a monument in honor of the conquerors of space. From it takes the beginning of the street, bearing the name of cosmonaut Leonov.

Profession - fighter pilot

Interest in the flight business of Alexei Leonov did not arise by accident. His elder brother, Pyotr Arkhipovich, was a fitter-toolmaker, an excellent specialist in his field. He willingly shared his knowledge with Alesha.

In addition to technology, Alexey Arkhipovich was fond of sports. He was engaged in fencing, cycling, javelin throwing and light athletics. Has discharges. His interest in painting evolved into a great talent.

Kaliningraders, personally acquainted with Alexei Arkhipovich, recall that he was an excellent guy - sociable, sporting, cheerful and kind.

The first flight education Alexei Leonov received in Kremenchuk, in flight school. Then he studied at the Chuguev Higher School of Fighter Pilots, after which, in the late fifties, flew on combat aircraft.

The first cosmonaut detachment

Sergey Korolev very carefully chose candidates for flights into space. In the record of Alexei Leonov, in addition to excellent performance from the duty station and excellent sports training, there was also the landing of a MiG-15bis fighter aircraft in extreme conditions with a stalled engine. In the early sixties, he was admitted to the first, Gagarin, cosmonaut detachment, consisting of twenty men.

To the spacewalk Alexey Leonov was prepared perfectly. In addition to him, the cosmonaut detachment included other, equally worthy candidates. This is Valery Bykovsky, Pavel Popovich, Victor Gorbatko, Vladimir Komarov, Ivan Anikeev, and others. There are only 20 people. Technically, each of them could cope with any simulated situation. SP Korolev stopped the choice of Alexei Arkhipovich as a man who can most accurately describe the impression of outer space. And I was not mistaken.

Despite the fact that the preparation for spacewalk was repeatedly and thoroughly worked on the ground, it was impossible to foresee everything.

Training took place in special cells, where weightlessness was imitated. In accordance with the indicators of individual anatomy, as well as taking into account the air pressure inside the spacesuit and the expected external conditions, the spacesuits were designed separately for each cosmonaut.

It was not possible to accurately simulate all the conditions unusual for the inhabitants of the Earth in the laboratory. For this reason, the first cosmonauts were at great risk.

The truth about flying is taboo for citizens of the USSR

Leonov's exit into outer space can be seen in a documentary film, which includes fragments taken by him on camera. Very impressive is the picture he wrote himself. This is the exact image of the ship, and next to it, in a spacesuit, Alexei Leonov. Photo of the picture is presented in this article. It must be said that only the elite could see this canvas in Soviet times. Small dimensions of the ship in comparison with its two passengers look not just impressive. They make us look at the pioneers of the cosmos as people of great courage.

The details of this event were classified in the Soviet era. The population of the country should not have known about the miscalculations or mistakes of the domestic science and the imperfection of technology.

In the picture where Alexei Leonov is portrayed, the first person in space who is in free flight can clearly be seen: the dimensions of the ship are so small that two people can hardly fit in it. There is no free space. Yes, it was, and based on the tasks assigned to the astronauts and the time that they were in flight, it was not necessary.

First flight, photography

In 1965, the Soviet spacecraft Voskhod-2 flew around the Earth. The main purpose was to test the capabilities of man and the devices created on the ground to perform work in an airless environment. The crew of the ship - Pavel Belyaev and Alexei Leonov.

Three years of pre-flight training and only 1 day, 2 hours, 2 minutes and 17 seconds of flight, and time in open space - 23 minutes and 41 seconds. The spacewalk of Alexei Leonov was accompanied by a distance of 5.35 meters from the ship. It lasted 12 minutes and 9 seconds. The astronaut was connected to the ship by a cable equipped with hooks and loops. Rebidding hooks helped to approach or move away from the spacecraft at the right distance.

The main task that Alexei Leonov had to perform in space was to take a picture on a video camera and a microphotograph. Video turned out perfectly as much as it was possible at the then level of technology. But it was not possible to take photographs from a microphotograph placed in a tiny, size-of-a-button, hole in a space suit. Because of the deformation of the suit, the astronaut could not pick up the cable that acted as the button of the camera, and the pneumatic pear that was put on its end broke away during the exit from the lock. She clung to the hatch.

Unexpectedness with a spacesuit

The suit was not completely perfect. He was tested at the greatest possible difference in external and internal pressures, which can be imitated on Earth. It was too far from what takes place in the conditions of outer space. The pressure inside the suit is 600 mm Hg. Pillar, outside - 9 mm. As a result, he swelled. The ribs of the stiffness and the straps could not stand. Legs and arms stopped reaching the end of the sleeves and pants. The suit became an uncontrollable capsule, in which a helpless man is imprisoned. Pavel Belyaev, the commander of the ship, saw what was happening to Leonov's costume, but could not help. Alexei Arkhipovich estimated that for about an hour he was breathing pure oxygen and nitrogen, which is present in the respiratory mixture on the ship, by this time should be washed out of the blood. He decided to squeeze the pressure inside the suit. This is prohibited by the instruction, but he did not see any other way out. If nitrogen remained in the blood, it would have boiled, which meant death. Nitrogen was not, and Alexei Arkhipovich, snagging and unfastening the hooks of the cable, reached the hatchway.

Acrobatics in the lock compartment

The size of the hatch of the airlock was less than that required for the dimensions of the cosmonaut, whose shoulder width in outer clothing is 68 cm. As the hatch opens inwards and the diameter of the lock is 1 m, it is impossible to turn around in it. To Alexei Arkhipovich fit into it and hermetically sealed hatches, you had to either reduce the size of the hatch cover, or reduce the lodgement. Just increase the size of the ship was not possible. For the preservation of the internal size of the lock was himself Alexei Leonov. Exit to space and return to the ship, the most rational sequence of actions was carefully verified and repeatedly practiced on the simulators. But study studies, and reality is not stingy for surprises.

The astronaut entered the hatch not with his legs, as suggested more ergonomic, but his head. To close the hatch, it was required to deploy the body 180 degrees. The task, taking into account the size of the cosmonaut and the tightness of the lock, is arhiturnal. Alexei Arkhipovich later recalled that the pulse rate at the end of this acrobatics was 200 beats per minute, and sweat filled his eyes with a continuous stream. Now the gateway should be separated, and you can return home to Earth. But it turned out that it was too early to calm down.

After the separation of the airlock, the ship began to rotate around its axis, and the pressure inside began to grow. The astronauts could only look at the instruments. It was impossible to stop the process. They have lowered the temperature and humidity on board as much as possible. The pressure continued to grow. The slightest spark - and they, together with the ship, would rupture into molecules. At some point, Alexei Leonov and Pavel Belyaev disconnected - either lost consciousness, or fell asleep. Subsequently, when reading the instrument diagrams, it was found that the pressure inside the ship instead of the required 160 atmospheres reached the mark of 920 mmHg, after which it began to decrease spontaneously.

The fact is that the ship, which was in the static position for about an hour, was deformed. One side of it to +150 degrees Celsius warmed the Sun, and the other, which was in the shade, cooled to -140 degrees. As a result, the ship was closed unsealed. Automation has worked on the mode of compensating for oxygen leakage. Eventually, the pressure became so high that the lid of the hatch was pressed down from the inside. The sealing was restored, and the instruments received the appropriate signal to bleed excess pressure. A jet of air from the outer side of the ship gave him a rotational movement.

Stop rotation was, as they say, a matter of technique, that is easy. Ahead was another task - landing.

Freelance landing

It is believed that take-off and landing are the most complex processes in the management of a spacecraft. "Sunrise-2" sat in the mode of manual control. Instead of the planned point near Kustanai, he plunged into a 1.5-meter snow of the deaf Ural taiga, 200 km from Perm. The history of the rescue of cosmonauts from taiga captivity deserves a separate chapter. Alexei Leonov and Pavel Belyaev spent two nights wrapping themselves in the planks torn from the inner surface of the ship, warming themselves around the fire, and Alexei Arkhipovich doing physical exercises, pulling himself up on the lines of the parachute, caught on top of the pines. The food stock they had - lyophilized meat, chocolate, biscuits and cottage cheese with cherry juice.

After the astronauts were found, and this happened four hours after the landing (this was helped by the bright orange dome of a kilometer parachute, the flight of which was seen by the inhabitants of the nearest settlements), they were dropped warm clothes and food, but the rescuers could not reach the pilots. For evacuation it was necessary to organize a place for landing of the helicopter. A team of loggers with chainsaws arrived and cleared a clearing.

Idol and faith

Alexei Leonov recalls that Sergei Pavlovich Korolev, the designer of Soviet spacecraft, the creator of the space industry in science and industry, the cynic, pessimist and skeptic who perceived life as real and future only in gloomy colors, was more to the cosmonauts than his father. He was their god.

I must say that the Soviet spacecraft in terms of reliability and safety were much superior to the ships of competitors - the United States. Since the beginning of space exploration during training and flight, our country lost five astronauts, while Americans buried 17 astronauts. The reason for our tragedies is the so-called human factor. The technique did not fail even once.

Valentin Bondarenko died during the psychological stability tests in conditions of solitary existence. This happened at the Institute of Aviation and Space Medicine as a result of a fire in the pressure chamber. Vladimir Komarov was killed when landing - the parachute did not open. Georgy Dobrovolsky, Vladislav Volkov and Viktor Patsayev died from the depressurization of the ship during the landing.

Failed flight

The second flight of Alexei Leonov was to take place in June 1961. The crew consisted of three cosmonauts - Alexey Leonov, Valery Kubasov and Peter Kolodin. Shortly before the planned day of the launch, the medical commission found a slight darkening in the lungs of Valery . It was decided to send a backup crew. For the first, it was a tragedy: Peter never flew into space, but for backups - a lucky chance. The flight program was brilliant. During the entry into the atmosphere, a misfortune occurred. The astronauts mistakenly opened the sealing valve.

The ship made a soft landing in the planned area, but people could not be saved. They were Viktor Patsayev, Vladislav Volkov and Georgy Dobrovolsky.

Second flight

Alexei Leonov in space was twice. The first flight took place in March 1965. In the open space, Alexei Leonov went out once. His assessment - in space you can live and work.

The second time he visited there in July 1976. Work in orbit lasted for 5 days, 22 hours, 30 minutes and 51 seconds. It was an international project. The goal is docking modules and scientific experiments. In space, the Soviet Union-19 flew with Alexei Leonov and Valery Kubasov and the American Apollo with three astronauts - Thomas Stafford, Donald Slayton and Vance Brand.

Talent of the painter

Thanks to the artistic talent of the cosmonaut, the whole of mankind was able to learn how the world looks beyond the terrestrial atmosphere, because at that time the images in space turned out only in black and white. Until now, space photography presents certain difficulties. This is due to the requirements to the resolution of optics, other than on the Earth, a kind of spreading of light rays, other refraction.

The uniqueness of the artist Alexei Leonov is that he reproduced in his paintings with engineering accuracy the technical features of space technology and cosmonaut's costume. A sharp look of the painter determined what shades of the spectrum are present in the cosmic landscapes.

Alexey Arkhipovich participated in the creation of postage stamps on the theme of the cosmos. On each of them - the present and future of space exploration. They are very interesting to consider. Take a look at the photo. Alexei Leonov can be considered a realist, able to foresee the future, because of what he portrayed, those years were not yet.

Life in the Earth

Alexey Arkhipovich flew twice to space. He is awarded two stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union, the Order of Lenin and the Red Star, medals of our country and abroad, is an honorary citizen of thirty Russian and foreign cities.

One of the lunar craters bears his name, as well as the planet of the constellation Libra.

Alexei Leonov, Major General of the aviation reserve, devoted his entire life to the cosmos. He graduated from the Air Force Engineering Academy. N. Ye. Zhukovsky, including adjuncture. Alexey Arkhipovich for a long time engaged in the training of astronauts and the development of space equipment. He belongs to research in the field of perception of color and light characteristics after the flight to space, perception of space and time in space conditions, psychological problems of interplanetary flight, as well as other scientific and experimental work.

He is married, has a daughter and two grandchildren.

The beginning of the third

Currently, cosmonaut Leonov Alexey Arkhipovich lives in Moscow. In the past, in 2014, the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, awarded him the Order of Merit for the Fatherland of the third degree. This is how the eightieth anniversary of the cosmonaut was celebrated, who spent a lot of his life and worked fruitfully for the good of his Motherland. He will forever remain in our memory as a man who made a huge contribution to the exploration of space and science, and as an artist who showed the world beyond the earth's atmosphere. Personality, by the example of which it is possible and necessary to educate the younger generation, is, of course, Alexei Leonov. His biography is incredibly interesting. About his space epic can be found in A. Eliseev's book "Life is a drop in the ocean". He also made several documentaries.