The space station was launched into low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union.

On the nineteenth of April back in 1971, the world's first space station, Salyut 1, was launched into low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union.

A part of the Salyut program, the mission was later terminated and burned up on reentry into Earth's atmosphere on October 11 of the same year.

The event is considered very significant as it paved way for the advancements in space exploration.

About Salyut 1

The idea of Salyut 1 came as a modification of the Soviet military's Almaz space station program.

 

The space station's construction began in early 1970, and it was shipped to Baikonur Cosmodrome after a year for testing as well as outfitting before the launch.

Launched using a three-stage UR-500K, the station measured 20 meters in length and weighed over 20 tons.

It comprised several different sections such as a main compartment with control stations, a transfer compartment equipped with a docking system, many portholes and colored zones, and the Orion 1 Space Observatory.

Salyut 1 was visited by two spacecrafts - Soyuz 10 and Soyuz 11.

Soyuz 10 was launched on April 22, 1971, carrying cosmonauts Vladimir Shatalov, Aleksei Yeliseyev, and Nikolai Rukavishnikov. However, it failed to hard-dock with Salyut 1 due to some technical malfunctions.

 

Soyuz 11, on the other hand, was launched on June 6, 1971, carrying cosmonauts Georgy Dobrovolsky, Viktor Patsayev, and Vladislav Volkov. It stayed on the space station for 23 days.

Some interesting facts

The launch was initially scheduled for April 12 to mark the 10th glorious anniversary of cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin’s mission. But it got delayed due to some technical issues.

 

The space station had dining areas, water and food storage, exercise equipment, toilets, and more.

As part of the Salyut program, the mission was followed by five more successful launches of seven more stations.