Yuri Gagarin
1934 – 1968 Soviet cosmonaut, pilot
The first human being in space, whose 1961 orbit made him a global hero and a symbol of Soviet achievement.
- Religion
- Raised in a Soviet peasant family; officially atheist.
- Affiliations
- The Soviet cosmonaut corps.
Yuri Gagarin, a carpenter's son, became the first human in space aboard Vostok 1 in April 1961, orbiting the earth once. Instantly world-famous, he was a propaganda triumph for the Soviet Union. He died in a training-jet crash in 1968.
Connections
- associate of Valentina Tereshkova — Fellow Soviet cosmonaut; she followed his first orbit as the first woman in space.
In the timeline
- 1961 Gagarin, First Human in Space mentioned
- 1961 Yuri Gagarin, first human in space central figure
- 1961 Gagarin becomes the first human in space mentioned