The Lost Cosmonauts of the Soviet Union, and Other Harrowing Real-Life Space Tales

Today in the Cold, we have some harrowing real-life stories that sound like they're straight out of science fiction. We uncover chilling tales of the lost cosmonauts of 1950s and 60s Soviet Russia, including what may be actual audio from one of these failed missions. It includes a female cosmonaut no less! We also ponder the very different ethics which distinguished the American and Soviet space programs of the Cold War. This episode comes right on the heels of Elon Musk's newest SpaceX endeavor - the Inspiration 4 - which is the first all-civilian mission to go into orbit. Our new space race - taking place mostly amongst our eccentric billionaire class, has a very different feel to it, and has certainly re-energized my passion for the stars. It's also gotten me thinking about the way we, as a culture, approach risk and danger as we venture back into manned space flight. Do check out the Inspiration4 homepage, as it details their mission including the pillars of leadership, hope, generosity, and prosperity that define it, and how the four crew members were chosen to exemplify these qualities. It's truly a science fiction writer's dream.https://inspiration4.com/ This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2017/08/31/the-lost-cosmonauts-of-the-soviet-union/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/victoria-dougherty/support