Colonel Yuri Gagarin - First Man in Space

On this date in 1961, a 27 year old Soviet Major named Yuri Gagarin became the first human to orbit Earth when his Vostok 1 circled Earth at a speed of 27,400 kilometers per hour for 108 minutes. At the highest point, Gagarin was about 327 kilometers above Earth. Colonel Yuri Gagarin died on March 27, 1968 when the MiG-15 he was piloting crashed near Moscow. At the time of his death, Yuri Gagarin was in training for a second space mission. We honor him and other cosmonauts and astronauts who have lost their lives in the pursuit of knowledge in our Astronau/Cosmonaut Memorial.

Find out what else happened This Date in Astronomy and Space.

• Another important Soviet space mission was the Venera 5 mission to Venus.
  
• Astronomy & Space Daily News Headlines for April 12, 2005.
  • Air Force, Boeing Identify Problem With Delta 4 Rocket
  • How Colliding Galaxies Built the Universe
  • Russia, France to Build S. American Launch Pad
• Venera 5 was followed by Venera 6.
  
• Forum Post of the Day:
  
  Subject: Stars in Space
  "Certaily.I remember what Gagarin said from sky.The sky is black and I see stars much brighter."
  alokmohan
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