This lifeless space traveler orbited the Earth on March 23, 1961, weeks before Yuri Gagarin's flight. His mission tested the Vostok spacecraft and SK-1 pressure suit, as well as the tracking and recovery operations. The mannequin is named "Ivan Ivanovich," the Russian equivalent of "John Doe." Technicians were concerned that Ivan's features were so lifelike that they wrote "model" on the forehead, so anyone finding the mannequin upon landing would not be confused.

Like subsequent Vostok cosmonauts, Ivan was ejected from the spacecraft in an ejection seat after reentering the atmosphere. He parachuted out of the seat and landed near the Ural Mountains city of Izevsk during a heavy snow storm. Ivan has remained in his spacesuit for over 35 years.

Manufacturer: Moscow Prosthetic Appliances Works (mannequin); Zvezda (space suit)

Lent by The Perot Foundation

SOVIET SECRETS

Although the Soviet Union was achieving newsworthy firsts in space, very little was known in the West about its space program. Detailed information about missions and the identity of program managers and engineers were closely guarded state secrets. The notebooks of Konstantin Feoktistov, an engineer and cosmonaut whose importance was hidden for decades, contain rare, behind-the-scenes insights into the early Soviet space program during 1958-1959.

Courtesy of The Perot Foundation

Courtesy of The Perot Foundation

Courtesy of The Perot Foundation