Yuri Gagarin

Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin is a pilot-cosmonaut of the USSR, the first earthling to go into space, a Hero of the Soviet Union. On April 12, 1961 Yuri Gagarin flew into space on the Vostok-1 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. After 108 minutes of flight Yuri Gagarin successfully landed in Saratov region.

The cosmonaut became a model and a legend not only for the citizens of the USSR, but also he is an honorable citizen of foreign cities and an international public figure. Yuri Alekseyevich opened a new page in the exploration of space and became a symbol of the development of Soviet science and aviation. As a world celebrity Gagarin visited about 30 countries at the invitation of foreign governments and public organizations.

Yuri Gagarin was a colonel in the Air Force of the USSR (1963), military pilot 1st class, Honored Master of Sports of the USSR (1961), a member of the Central Committee of Komsomol, deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of the 7th and 8th convocations. On March 27, 1968 Yuri Gagarin died in a plane crash in Vladimir region while performing a training flight on the MiG-15UTI.

Awards that Gagarin deservedly received:

• 1961 – Hero of the Soviet Union.
• 1961 Soviet pilot-cosmonaut
• 1961 – Hero of Socialist Labor
• 1961 – Hero of Socialist Labor
• 1961 Honored Master of Sports of the USSR
• 1961 – Order of Lenin
• 1961 – Medal of the Gold Star
• 1961 – Hero of Labor
• 1966 – Medal for Distinguished Service, 3rd Class

A crater on the moon and a small planet are named after Gagarin.

Gagarin’s flight lasted only 108 minutes, but it is not the number of minutes that determines his contribution to the history of space exploration. He was the first and will remain so forever.