German Titov… Perhaps, even now, in a world full of various events and incidents, it is difficult to meet someone who has never heard of him. What is the secret of such popularity? In principle, if you look into the details, there is nothing surprising, because in his life this, without exaggeration to say, the national hero managed to do a lot in the exploration of Russian space.
What is Cosmonautics Day for you?
The past century has given the planet a lot. There were wars, and victories, and failures, and discoveries. But something happened that is impossible not to know. On April 12, 1961, the Vostok spacecraft made the first flight in the history of mankind with an astronaut on board.
Today this day is officially considered Cosmonautics Day. The dream of humanity came true - gravity was overcome, and such names as Yuri Gagarin, German Titov, Alexei Leonov and many others will forever remain in the memory of grateful descendants.
In the history of national cosmonauticsmany great accomplishments. In general, space exploration in the Soviet Union was carried out in stages. The first manned flights were perceived as amazing events, and each successful launch of space rockets turned into an event that united people, allowed them to feel how dear the planet Earth is to them and how immensely huge the Universe is.
At the beginning of space exploration, the power of civilization seemed limitless. The youth were seized by the desire to work hard for the prosperity of the space industry. It was at this time that those who later happened to become pioneers in the development of the World Space were born.
Who is German Stepanovich Titov?
As you know, Yuri Gagarin became the first cosmonaut in the world. After his successful flight, the space program continued.
The second person who made an orbital flight around the planet was German Titov. He was in space for more than a day. Of course, the achievements of the first cosmonauts were observed in all countries. The success of the cosmonautics of the Soviet Union was stunning.
Childhood years of an outstanding person
The biography of German Titov is interesting literally from the first years of his life. As a child, a little boy was used to achieving his goals. He was even considered somewhat obsessed. The guy has always been attracted to the stars. He loved to look at the night sky, dreaming of climbing very high in order to be closer to the beautiful luminaries, to his dream. How to get to them, then it was not clear to him, butthe amazing beauty of the night sky with bright stars always attracted his attention.
Herman's father was a teacher. His balanced attitude to life allowed the boy to fully experience the atmosphere of friendly communication. Patience when performing complex tasks, perseverance in achieving goals, calm prudence even in difficult situations - German Titov always appreciated these qualities of his father. Teachers, friends, fellow soldiers, close acquaintances and relatives - the young man was very lucky to meet wonderful people.
Main childhood hobbies
One of his main hobbies during his school years was technology. With interest and incredible perseverance, he tried to learn all the secrets of the school projection apparatus. Spinning rollers, wheels of different sizes, belt drives - the work of this device was fascinating. Herman followed the mechanic until he found out all the secrets of the movie camera. After some time, he was already playing films on his own in the village club.
Car, tractor, radio engineering - all technical devices attracted the attention of an inquisitive high school student. He managed to build a radio by himself and even worked on building a small power plant.
Youth of the future astronaut
After graduating from school, he did not hesitate to tell the Barnaul military registration and enlistment office about his desire to become a pilot. German Titov went confidently towards the realization of his dream. Discipline, desire to winAll this was very important to him. He realized early on that without everyday work it is impossible to get closer to achieving the goal.
He made many sorties on planes, jumped with a parachute. Thanks to his flight achievements, cosmonaut German Titov, whose biography is very interesting, but at the same time resembles the biography of the most ordinary person of that time, was included in the squad of Soviet conquerors of the universe.
Why Yuri Gagarin was the first
German Titov in the cosmonaut corps was Yuri Gagarin's understudy in preparation for space flight. Why didn't he get the right to become a pioneer? It is very difficult to give an unequivocal answer to this question, there are too many different versions. There is even an assumption that Herman did not fly first into space because of his name. However, despite everything, he officially became an Air Force astronaut in 1961.
From that moment on, intensive training became not only mandatory, it was simply impossible to imagine your day without them. It was a particularly stressful stage in my life. Aiming for the stars is no longer a childhood dream - space flight is now possible.
The flight of German Titov into space
He flew into space on August 6, 1961. It should be noted that the childhood dream came true with a vengeance: 17 times the cosmonaut circled in near-Earth orbit.
The distance covered was 703 thousand kilometers. I can't believe that G. Titov was only 25 years old at that time! By the way, to this day he is considered the youngest cosmonaut inworld.
Titov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. He was awarded the Order of V. I. Lenin and the Gold Star medal.
Media about the legendary man, or what was left behind the scenes
German Titov has repeatedly stated to journalists that in early childhood he did not dream of becoming a pilot at all. He recalled with humor that when he first saw the pilot who came to school, he was very impressed with his luxurious trousers and polished boots.
He was sure that Yuri Gagarin deservedly became the first cosmonaut of the Earth. We often read about this in his press interviews. G. Titov considered him a remarkable representative of the young generation of the country of the Soviets, who in childhood experienced the horrors of the war with Nazi Germany. Gagarin studied at a vocational school, was a worker, a student, a cadet of an flying club, and a pilot. It was the path that many of Gagarin and Titov's peers traveled.
Of course, German Titov really wanted to be the first to fly into space. After Gagarin's successful flight, the feelings experienced were very complex: the joy that the flight was successful, and the regret that he was not the first cosmonaut after all.
Not everyone knows that German Titov is an astronaut who spent the first day in zero gravity. His journey was more difficult than Yuri Gagarin's flight.
Medical experts initially doubted that such a flight would not cause physical suffering to the astronaut. However, despite the heavy state of he alth, German Titov retained his composure and reported to Earth thatfeels good.
By the way, when he landed, he almost ended up on the railroad tracks when a train was approaching him at full speed. Luck accompanied him - it's great that he managed to land 5 km (!) From the railway track.
And only after, at a meeting of the State Commission, he told the truth about his he alth in flight. In order to continue working to improve the conditions of space flight, it was impossible to hide the truth.
