INTERNATIONAL DAY OF HUMAN SPACE FLIGHTS

12 April 2021

This week we are celebrating the International Day of Human Space Flight. This day is a special day for our country - a day of pride, as on April 12, 1961, a citizen of the Soviet Union, Yuri Gagarin, for the first time in the world made an orbital flyby of the Earth, opening the era of manned space flights. The flight, which lasted only 108 minutes, was a powerful breakthrough in space exploration. The name of Yuri Gagarin has become widely known in the world. The first cosmonaut himself forever wrote his name and this flight in world history.

On April 12, 1961, the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin on the Vostok-1 spacecraft took off from the Baikonur cosmodrome and for the first time in the world made an orbital flyby of the planet Earth. The flight in near-earth space lasted almost 2 hours.

Traditionally, the main celebrations are held in Moscow: excursions are organized to the Moscow Planetarium, and special projects, lectures and meetings are prepared at the Museum of Cosmonautics. On this day, 80 countries of the world are organizing the We in Space Project which includes educational events and competitions. The project is supported by Roscosmos, Yuri Gagarin's family members and the Russian Ministry of Science and Education.