Picture of Zebra Astronaut

Biography

Kosheleva Sofia Ivanovna, known as "the Zebra", was a Russian cosmonaut born on February 16, 1952. She grew up in a modest family in Moscow and began to show exceptional abilities in mathematics and science very early in her life. life.


She entered the Russian Academy of Space Sciences in 1970, where she graduated as a cosmonaut in 1975. She was then assigned to the Soviet space program and quickly became a prominent member of the astronaut corps. She also became famous for her remarkable abilities to navigate space unassisted, earning her the nickname "The Zebra".


In 1983, Kosheleva Sofia Ivanovna left for her first space mission to perform scientific experiments on the Salyut 7 orbital station. She stayed there for more than six months before the mission ended with a successful return to Earth. . Over the next few years, she made four more spaceflights, including three more Salyut 7 missions and a Mir-2 mission that became the Soviets' first successful long-duration international mission.


Unfortunately, Kosheleva Sofia Ivanovna died accidentally on July 19, 2003 while involved in an ambitious project to build a permanent orbital laboratory between Russia and the United States. His invaluable contribution to the conquest of space will always be honored by future generations who seek to explore the uncharted universe beyond Earth's solar system.