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15 Facts About Irina Solovyova

1.

Irina Solovyova was born on September 6,1937 and is a retired Soviet cosmonaut active from 1962 to 1969.

2.

Irina Solovyova emerged as a public figure in the midst of the Cold War.

3.

Twenty-four year old Irina Solovyova was approached by the Soviet leaders and offered the position on the space squad.

4.

Valentina Tereshkova was eventually chosen to fly, and Irina Solovyova became her alternate.

5.

Irina Solovyova, originally from Ural, was an engineer with a science degree before she was chosen to join the space squad.

6.

Irina Solovyova attended and graduated from the Sverdlovsk Polytechnic Institute.

7.

Irina Solovyova was a member of the national skydiving team along with her fiance at the time, Sergey Kiselev, who was a skydiving instructor.

8.

Irina Solovyova was selected to have the opportunity to be the first woman to walk in space, however Svetlana Savitskaya ended up being chosen.

9.

Irina Solovyova was awarded the Belarusian Order For Service to the Motherland in the Armed Forces, 3rd class.

10.

Irina Solovyova is a retired Colonel in the Soviet Air Force.

11.

Irina Solovyova completed cosmonaut training from April 1962 through the 29th of November in 1962 alongside Kuznetsova and Tereshkova.

12.

Irina Solovyova became a member of an all-female Antarctic Expedition in February 1988.

13.

Irina Solovyova was looking for young, physically fit women who had undergone flight and parachute training for at least five to six months.

14.

Irina Solovyova was involved in the plans for another expedition in 1965, when Kamanin proposed new missions for the Voskhod system in April of that year.

15.

Ponomaryova and Irina Solovyova were proposed for an all-female spacewalk mission, with Ponomaryova as pilot and Irina Solovyova the spacewalker.