Cosmonaut Leonov Marks 50 Years Since Mankind's First Spacewalk

Alexei Leonov was the first human to exit, float free and then reenter an orbiting spacecraft, during the Voskhod-2 spacecraft mission on March 18, 1965.

KRASNOGORSK (Sputnik) — Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov will be in Krasnogorsk Wednesday to celebrate his spacewalk of 50 years ago, mankind's first.

Leonov, who will turn 81 in May, was the first human to exit, float free and then reenter an orbiting spacecraft, during the Voskhod-2 spacecraft mission on March 18, 1965.

"Seven emergency situations happened during the flight, which had never been described anywhere. The most serious of them […] when the navigation system failed," Leonov told journalists.

 

Spacewalk

© RIA Novosti

50 years ago Russia cosmonaut Alexei Leonov became the first human to walk in space! pic.twitter.com/5lSXIc4blq

— David Saint-Jacques (@Astro_DavidS) 18 Март 2015

The cosmonaut added that it took the rescuers three days to find the Voskhod-2 crew after their successful landing.

The legendary space explorer attended the unveiling of Cosmonauts Alley in the city of Krasnogorsk near Moscow. A model of the Voskhod-2 is part of the new monument, installed at the site.

The ceremony also featured a presentation of a new feature film about Leonov's historic spacewalk, set for theatrical release in 2016. The retired cosmonaut acted as a consultant on the project.

Leonov is also set to unveil a memorial stone, celebrating his extraterrestrial exploits, at the Star City space training facility.