 The Vostok 1 spacecraft, aboard which Yuri Gagarin became the first man to orbit the Earth on 12 April 1961 | |
| Orbital launches | |
|---|---|
| First | 31 January |
| Last | 22 December |
| Total | 50 |
| Successes | 28 |
| Failures | 20 |
| Partial failures | 2 |
| Catalogued | 36 |
| National firsts | |
| Spaceflight |  Italy |
| Space traveller |  Soviet Union United States |
| Rockets | |
| Maiden flights | Atlas LV-3A Agena-B Kosmos-2I 63S1 Saturn I (suborbital test) |
| Retirements | Atlas LV-3A Agena-A Juno II |
| Crewed flights | |
| Orbital | 2 |
| Suborbital | 2 |
| Total travellers | 4 |