Andriyan Grigoryevich Nikolayev ( Chuvash and russian: Андриян Григорьевич Николаев; 5 September 1929 – 3 July 2004) was a

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

cosmonaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...

. In 1962, aboard

Vostok 3 Vostok 3 (russian: Восток-3, lit=Orient 3' or 'East 3) and Vostok 4 (, 'Orient 4' or 'East 4') were Soviet space program flights in August 1962, intended to determine the ability of the human body to function in conditions of weightlessne ...

, he became the third Soviet cosmonaut to fly into space. Nikolayev was an ethnic Chuvash and is considered as the first Turkic person who flew into space.

Early life

Andrian Grigoryevich Nikolayev was born on September 5, 1929, in Sorseli, a village in the Chuvash region of the

Volga River The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Caspian Sea. The Volga has a length of , and a catchme ...

valley, and spent his time growing up on a collective farm.

Education and career

Nikolayev supported his family following the death of his father in 1944, however this was not preferred by his mother, who preferred that he earn an education. Nikolayev later entered medical school before he joined the Soviet army. During his training Nikolayev was able to maintain a very calm state during stressful situations. Nikolayev's calm made him a fair candidate for becoming a cosmonaut. His future colleagues Yuri Gagarin, Gherman Titov, and seventeen others joined him in March 1960. Nikolayev's future wife was cosmonaut

Valentina Tereshkova Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova ( rus, Валентина Владимировна Терешкова, links=no, p=vɐlʲɪnʲˈtʲinə vlɐˈdʲimʲɪrəvnə tʲɪrʲɪʂˈkovə, a=Valentina Tereshkova.ogg; born 6 March 1937) is an engine ...

, and he reportedly kissed her goodbye before boarding Vostok 3.

History

Nikolayev flew on two space flights:

(becoming the third Soviet cosmonaut) and Soyuz 9. His call sign in these flights was

Falcon Falcons () are birds of prey in the genus ''Falco'', which includes about 40 species. Falcons are widely distributed on all continents of the world except Antarctica, though closely related raptors did occur there in the Eocene. Adult falcons ...

(russian: Со́кол). On both, he set new endurance records for the longest time a human being had remained in orbit. He also served as backup for the

Vostok 2 Vostok 2 (russian: Восток-2, ''Orient 2'' or ''East 2'') was a Soviet space mission which carried cosmonaut Gherman Titov into orbit for a full day on August 6, 1961, to study the effects of a more prolonged period of weightlessness on th ...

and Soyuz 8 missions. On 22 January 1969, Nikolayev survived an assassination attempt on

Leonid Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev; uk, links= no, Леонід Ілліч Брежнєв, . (19 December 1906– 10 November 1982) was a Soviet politician who served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union between 1964 and ...

, undertaken by a Soviet Army deserter, Viktor Ilyin. He left the cosmonaut corps on 26 January 1982. Nikolayev was also the first person to make a television broadcast from space, in August 1962. Vostok 3 was part the first dual space flight, with

Pavel Popovich Pavel Romanovich Popovich (russian: Па́вел Рома́нович Попо́вич, uk, Павло Романович Попович, Pavlo Romanovych Popovych) (5 October 1930 – 29 September 2009) was a Soviet cosmonaut. Popovich was the ...

on Vostok 4. In the early days of space travel, it was usual to place trainee astronauts into isolation chambers to see how long they could last alone. They sat in silence unable to gauge time. Many men cracked but Nikolayev lasted the longest – four days – and became known as the Iron Man. On 3 November 1963, he married

, the first woman to fly in space (see

Vostok 6 Vostok 6 (russian: Восток-6, ''Orient 6'' or ''East 6'') was the first human spaceflight to carry a woman, cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova, into space. Mission The spacecraft was launched on 16 June 1963. While Vostok 5 had been delayed by ...

). They had one daughter, Elena Andriyanovna (now a doctor of medicine), before their marriage collapsed. However, it was not until 1982 that they divorced. In 2004, Nikolayev died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...

Cheboksary Cheboksary (; russian: Чебокса́ры, r=Cheboksáry, p=tɕɪbɐˈksarɨ; cv, Шупашкар, ''Şupaşkar'') is the capital city of Chuvashia, Russia and a port on the Volga River. Geography The city is located in the Volga Upland reg ...

, the capital of Chuvashia in Russia. A scandal ensued. His daughter, who lives in Moscow, desired that he be interred in the cemetery at Star City. The president of Chuvashia had other ideas. After a farewell ceremony in

, Nikolayev was buried in his native village of Shorshely. He has no family living in the republic. Plans are in the works to move the body to Star City. Nikolayev was also a keen skier:

Service in the Air Force made us strong, both physically and morally. All of us cosmonauts took up sports and PT seriously when we served in the Air Force. I know that
Yuri Gagarin Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin; Gagarin's first name is sometimes transliterated as ''Yuriy'', ''Youri'', or ''Yury''. (9 March 1934 – 27 March 1968) was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut who became the first human to journey into outer space. T ...
was fond of
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...
. He liked to play goal keeper.
Gherman Titov Gherman Stepanovich Titov (russian: Герман Степанович Титов; 11 September 1935 – 20 September 2000) was a Soviet cosmonaut who, on 6 August 1961, became the second human to orbit the Earth, aboard Vostok 2, preceded by Y ...
was a
gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, s ...
enthusiast, Andriyan Nikolayev liked
skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee ( ...
,
Pavel Popovich Pavel Romanovich Popovich (russian: Па́вел Рома́нович Попо́вич, uk, Павло Романович Попович, Pavlo Romanovych Popovych) (5 October 1930 – 29 September 2009) was a Soviet cosmonaut. Popovich was the ...
went in for weight lifting. I don't think I am wrong when I say that sports became a fixture in the life of the cosmonauts.Bykovsky quoted in Gavrilin, Vyacheslav ''Sportsmen of the Soviet Union''. pp. 26–7

Awards

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union (russian: Герой Советского Союза, translit=Geroy Sovietskogo Soyuza) was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for ...

, twice (18 August 1962, 3 July 1970) *

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration ...

(18 August 1962) *

Order of the Red Banner of Labour The Order of the Red Banner of Labour (russian: Орден Трудового Красного Знамени, translit=Orden Trudovogo Krasnogo Znameni) was an order of the Soviet Union established to honour great deeds and services to th ...

(15 January 1976) * Order of the Red Star (1961) *

Order for Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...

, 3rd class (30 May 1988) * Medal "For Strengthening Military Cooperation" (18 February 1991) *

USSR State Prize The USSR State Prize (russian: links=no, Государственная премия СССР, Gosudarstvennaya premiya SSSR) was the Soviet Union's state honor. It was established on 9 September 1966. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, t ...

(1981) *

Pilot-Cosmonaut of the USSR The honorary title Pilot-Cosmonaut of the USSR (russian: Летчик-космонавт СССР) was a state award of the Soviet Union presented to all cosmonauts who flew for the Soviet Space Agency. Usually accompanying the distinction ...

* Hero of Mongolia * Hero of Labour (1965, Mongolia) *

Order of Sukhbaatar The Order of Sukhbaatar (or Order of Suche Bator) is a state decoration of Mongolia, originally instituted on 16 May 1941. It was awarded to Mongolians and foreigners "for special services to defenses, economic and cultural construction of the Mon ...

(1965, Mongolia) * Hero of Socialist Labour (Bulgaria) *

Order of Georgi Dimitrov The Order of Georgi Dimitrov (or Order of Georgy Dimitrov, bg, Орден Георги Димитров) was the highest award of the People's Republic of Bulgaria. It was instituted on 17 June 1950 and awarded to Bulgarians and foreigners for out ...

(Bulgaria) *

Order of Cyril and Methodius The Order of Saints Cyril and Methodius is an award conferred by the Republic of Bulgaria. History It has had three incarnations : * first on 18 May 1909 by the Kingdom of Bulgaria, * second on 13 December 1950 by the People's Republic of Bulga ...

(Bulgaria) * Hero of Socialist Labour (Vietnam, 1962) *Order "State Banner IRR" (Hungary, 1964) *National Order of Nepal (1963) * Star of the Republic of Indonesia, 2nd class (1963) *

Order of the Nile The Order of the Nile (''Kiladat El Nil'') was established in 1915 and was one of the Kingdom of Egypt's principal orders until the monarchy was abolished in 1953. It was then reconstituted as the Republic of Egypt's highest state honor. Sultana ...

(Egypt) *Honorary Citizen of the Chuvash Republic,

Petrozavodsk Petrozavodsk (russian: Петрозаводск, p=pʲɪtrəzɐˈvotsk; Karelian, Vepsian and fi, Petroskoi) is the capital city of the Republic of Karelia, Russia, which stretches along the western shore of Lake Onega for some . The population ...

(1980),

Karaganda Karaganda or Qaraghandy ( kk, Қарағанды/Qarağandy, ; russian: Караганда, ) is the capital of Karaganda Region in the Republic of Kazakhstan. It is the fourth most populous city in Kazakhstan, behind Almaty (Alma-Ata), Astan ...

and

Smolensk Smolensk ( rus, Смоленск, p=smɐˈlʲensk, a=smolensk_ru.ogg) is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River, west-southwest of Moscow. First mentioned in 863, it is one of the oldest ...

*Honoured Master of Sports of the USSR (1962) RIAN archive 611957 Valentina Tereshkova and Andrian Nikolaev.jpg, Wedding of Tereshkova and Nikolayev in 1963 RIAN archive 68289 Nikolayev, Tereshkova and Sato.jpg, Tereshkova and Nikolayev with Japanese prime minister

Eisaku Satō was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister from 1964 to 1972. He is the third-longest serving Prime Minister, and ranks second in longest uninterrupted service as Prime Minister. Satō entered the National Diet in 1949 as a membe ...

in 1965 Cheboksary. Monument to Andriyan Nikolayev, Soviet cosmonaut.jpg, Monument to Andriyan Nikolayev in

Бронзовый бюст космонавта Николаева (Шоршелы).JPG, Nikolayev Monument in Shorshely

References

External links

Биография на сайте Люди
* ttp://pda.lenta.ru/russia/2004/07/04/nikolaev/ Умер третий космонавт Андриян Николаевbr>Шоршелы и А. Г. НиколаевСтихотворение Андрияну Николаеву летчику-космонавту посвящается (автор Елена Светлая, г. Чебоксары)Стихотворение про А. Г. Николаева «Чувашский космонавт»The official website of the city administration Baikonur – Honorary citizens of Baikonur