Who was Yuri Gagarin

Yuri Gagarin was born on March 9, 1934, near Gagarin, Russia. He was the Soviet cosmonaut who became the first person to travel in the space in 1961.

Gagarin was a son of carpenter, he was graduated as a moulder from trade school near Moscow in 1951. He took a course in flying at the industrial college at Saratov. After completing his course, he entered the Soviet Air Force cadet school at Orenburg, from which he graduated in 1957.

Gagarin’s 4 3/4-ton Vostok 1 spacecraft was launched at 9:07 AM, Moscow time on April 12, 1961. He orbited once in 1 hour 29 minutes at a maximum altitude of 187 miles (301 km), and landed at 10:55 AM in the Soviet Union. His spaceflight brought him immediate worldwide fame. He was awarded the Order of Lenin and given the titles of Hero of the Soviet Union and Pilot Cosmonaut of the Soviet Union. Monuments were raised to him, and streets were renamed in his honour across the Soviet Union.

Yuri Gagarin never went to space again, but instead he took part in training other cosmonauts. In 1962 he was served as a deputy to the Supreme Soviet. He died March 27, 1968, near Moscow, he was killed with another pilot in the crash of two-set jet. His ashes were placed in a niche in the Kremlin wall. After his death the town of Gzhatsk was renamed Gagarin.