Small Stories About Big Destiny and The Star: Russian Cosmonauts Signed Collection.

BEREZOVOY, Anatoly; Vladimir Dzhanibekov; Vladimir Kovalyonok; Leonid Popov; Pavel Popovich; Gennadi Strekalov; Vyacheslav Zudov et al.

$4,000.00

Item Number: 117176

Moscow: Various publishers, 1976-1982.

Rare collection of two books documenting the Soviet  Space Program, signed by over 20 Russian Cosmonauts. Octavo, two volumes, illustrated with photographs and drawings. The Star, published in 1982, is signed on the title page by Russian cosmonauts Kovalyonok, Strekalov, Berezovoy, Zudov, Popovich, Malyshev, Demin, Rozhdestvensy, Artyukhin, Gorbatko, Popov, Savynikh, Kizim, Bykovsky, Sarafanov, Serebrov, Lyakov Glazkov, Dzhanibekov, and Lazatev. Small Stories about Big Destiny, published in 1976, is signed on the front free endpaper by Popovich, Leonox, Volynov, Filipchenko, Lazarev, Klimuk, Gorbatko, Zholobov, Gubarev, Zudor, Bykovsky, Shonin, and Demin. In fine condition, with a description affixed to the front pastedown of Small Stories about Big Destiny. Both volumes are in near fine condition. An exceptional collection of historic signatures.

Active from the 1930s until the collapse of the USSR in 1991, the Soviet space program was primarily based on the cosmonautic exploration of space and the development of the expendable launch vehicles. Over its 60-years of history, the Soviet program was responsible for a number of pioneering feats and accomplishments in human spaceflight, including the first intercontinental ballistic missile (R-7), first satellite (Sputnik 1), first animal in Earth orbit (the dog Laika on Sputnik 2), first human in space and Earth orbit (cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin on Vostok 1), first woman in space and Earth orbit (cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova on Vostok 6), first spacewalk (cosmonaut Alexei Leonov on Voskhod 2), first Moon impact (Luna 2), first image of the far side of the Moon (Luna 3) and uncrewed lunar soft landing (Luna 9), first space rover (Lunokhod 1), first sample of lunar soil automatically extracted and brought to Earth (Luna 16), and first space station (Salyut 1). Because of the program's classified status, and for propaganda value, announcements of the outcomes of missions were delayed until success was certain, and failures were sometimes kept secret.