REMEMBERING Alexei Leonov (1934-2019)

摘要

Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov, who died in Moscow on 11 October 2019 at the age of 85,was a giant of the Soviet space programme. He performed the world's first spacewalk,trained to land on the Moon, commanded the Soyuz 19 spacecraft on the first joint docking with the Americans, and was later 'Chief Cosmonaut', in overall charge of the Russian cosmonaut team..When Alexei was still a toddler, Arkhip, his father, was arrested after accusations by vindictive neighbours, who declared him an "enemy of the people". A mob stripped their house of food and furniture. Arkhip was subsequently cleared of all charges and rejoined his family at Kemerovo on the Tom River, finding work at the local nuclear power plant. Alexei recalled: "He was not alone: many were being arrested. It was part of a conscious drive by the authorities to eradicate anyone who showed too much independence."