Vostok 1

Key facts

Mission & specifications

Mission

Vostok 1 carried Yuri Gagarin into history as the first human being to leave the Earth. Launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on 12 April 1961, the spherical Soviet capsule lifted off atop a converted intercontinental missile, and as the engines lit Gagarin called out 'Poyekhali!' — 'Let's go!'. He was twenty-seven, an air-force pilot chosen from a group of finalists, and for 108 minutes he circled the planet once, reaching an altitude of around 320 kilometres and seeing the curve of the world and the blackness of space as no one ever had. So little was known about how a person would cope in weightlessness that the controls were locked, the flight flown automatically, with a sealed code in the cabin should Gagarin need to take manual command in an emergency. As the capsule fell back through the atmosphere its design offered no soft landing, so at about seven kilometres up Gagarin ejected and parachuted down separately, coming to earth in a field outside Engels — a detail the Soviets concealed for years to satisfy aviation records that required a pilot to land with the craft. The flight was a stunning victory in the Cold War space race, beating the United States by a matter of weeks and prompting President Kennedy to set his sights on the Moon. Gagarin became one of the most famous people on the planet, a smiling symbol of the new space age, until his death in a training-jet crash in 1968. The day of his flight is still marked each year as the Day of Cosmonautics.

1. 1961Launch from BaikonurLaunch

   A Vostok rocket lifts off as Gagarin radios 'Poyekhali!' — 'Let's go!'.

2. 1961First human in spaceMilestone

   Reaching orbit, Yuri Gagarin becomes the first person ever to leave the Earth.

3. 1961A single orbit in 108 minutesOrbiter

   The automated capsule circles the world once, at up to about 320 km altitude.

4. 1961Ejection and parachute landingLanding

   Gagarin ejects at about 7 km and parachutes to a field near Engels as the capsule lands separately.

5. 1962Remembered as the Day of CosmonauticsMilestone

   The flight is commemorated each year, and Gagarin becomes a worldwide symbol of the space age.

Images

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