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Astronauts are the explorers of space. The first astronauts were pioneers, taking on the unknown and 'going where no man has gone before'. Some astronauts have stayed in space for months at a time in the MIR space station orbiting Earth (see Space Station). Being an astronaut does not necessarily involve landing on the Moon (or any other planet), and only twelve have actually touched down on the Moon and explored its surface. Most work involves recapturing lost satellites (see picture below).
November 14, 1984: Space Shuttle Discovery astronaut Dale A. Gardner, left, holds a "For Sale" sign, making light reference to the status of the recaptured Westar VI satellite. Astronaut Joseph P. Allen IV stands at the end of the remote manipulator system (RMS) arm, which served as a cherry-picker for capture efforts.
Most astronauts are either American or Russian, and once, the two nations made a historic meeting in space. This 'Handshake in Orbit' happened in July 1975, and was welcomed throughout the world as a symbol of friendship and the potential for co-operation of the world's greatest nations in space exploration.
As well as being mentally fit and skilled, today's astronauts must be in excellent physical condition. They are subjected to special ground exercises (to prepare them for living and working in space), but some skills are difficult to master in training, and so, the astronauts practise and develop the techniques in space. Others who travel in spacecraft, such as scientists who work in the Space lab of the Space Shuttle (see Space Shuttle), or in the Skylab, do not endure such thorough training exercises.
Lab in the sky: Skylab
This page of 'The Development of Space Travel and the First Moon Landing' was designed and created by E.Abrosimova. Copyright © 2000 North London Collegiate School. All rights reserved.