Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2024 All Rights Reserved

42 years since the first flight of a Bulgarian astronaut in space

Nikolai Rukavishnikov and Georgi Ivanov (right)
Photo: BNR archive

The day was April 10, 1979 and the time 20 hours and 34 minutes. The Soyuz-33 spacecraft launched into orbit takes to outer space. The first Bulgarian cosmonaut Georgi Ivanov was onboard. He made 31 complete orbits around the Earth. Onboard the ship Bulgaria's Ivanov was with the Soviet cosmonaut Nikolai Rukavishnikov. 

This flight placed Bulgaria as the 6th space country in the world after the USSR, USA, Czechoslovakia, Poland and the GDR.

All-Bulgarian equipment and appliances were created specifically for this flight which were the work of Bulgarian scientists. Bulgarian scientists also created different types of space foods while preserving the taste, aroma and nutritional qualities of the products in space flight. 

Some of the Bulgarian developments continue to be used in space flights to this day.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Traffic to the Kapitan Andreevo border crossing between Bulgaria and Turkey is normalised

The truck traffic on the Maritsa highway to the Kapitan Andreevo border crossing at the Bulgarian-Turkish border is now normalized. "As of this morning, there are no more queues of trucks standing on the roadway waiting to cross the border," assured..

published on 11/22/24 3:04 PM

European Public Prosecutor's Office conducts searches in four Bulgarian cities for alleged fraud with EU funds

At the request of the European Public Prosecutor's Office, searches have been carried out in Sofia, Burgas, Petrich and Rila in connection with an investigation into alleged fraud with EU funds in the restoration of a church. In 2017, a public tender..

published on 11/22/24 1:42 PM

National Statistical Institute: Bulgarians aged 25 to 44 travel most

One million and eight hundred Bulgarian citizens travelled as tourists during the third quarter of the year, National Statistical Institute data show. 72.3% of them travelled inside the country, 20.8% travelled abroad and 6.9% - both inside Bulgaria..

published on 11/22/24 12:09 PM