Russia's first space woman Tereshkova wants to fly to Mars

Moscow, Mar 6 (UNI) Russia's first space woman Valentina Tereshkova today said she wanted to fly to Mars.

On the eve of her 70th birthday, Ms Tereshkova told reporters that she had only one hobby to fly to Mars.

''This is a unique and mysterious red planet, which we with Sergei Korolev dreamt of several decades ago,'' she said, adding, ''I am ready to fly there and never return.'' Ms Tereshkova, a former textile worker, at the age of 26, became the 5th Russian cosmonaut to go in the Earth's orbit. The world knew about the code-named Seagull, when her spaceship Vostok-VI was launched on June 16, 1963.

As an amateur parachutist, she did her best to be included in the first women team of cosmonauts.

''A five-member female group has more difficult load tests than a male group did,'' Ms Tereshkova said recalling those days.

''But all had only one mad idea to undergo this training faultlessly at any cost and fly to space,'' she said.

After her first and the only travel to space, she devoted all her life to social work.

Ms Tereshkova was honoured with the title of the Hero of the Soviet Union and many other titles. She was elected an honorary citizen of the city of her birthplace'' Yaroslavl. A lunar crater was also named after her.

''I am glad that difficult happiness fell to my lot to be among those, who laid the road to stars,'' Ms Tereshkova said.

UNI