 Launch of the Vostok 1 | |
| Operator | Soviet space program |
|---|---|
| Harvard designation | 1961 Mu 1 |
| COSPAR ID | 1961-012A |
| SATCAT no. | 103 |
| Mission duration | 1 hour, 48 minutes[1] 1 hour, 46 minutes[2][3] |
| Orbits completed | 1 |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | Vostok-3KA No.3 |
| Manufacturer | Experimental Design Bureau OKB-1 |
| Launch mass | 4,725 kg (10,417 lb)[1] |
| Landing mass | 2,400 kg (5,290 lb) |
| Dimensions | 2.30 m (7 ft 6.5 in) diameter |
| Crew | |
| Crew size | 1 |
| Members | Yuri Gagarin |
| Callsign | Кедр (Kedr – Siberian pine),[4]: 275 or: Ласточка (Lastochka - Swallow)[a] |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | April 12, 1961, 06:07 UTC[8] |
| Rocket | Vostok-K 8K72K |
| Launch site | Baikonur 1/5 45°55′13″N 63°20′32″E / 45.920278°N 63.342222°E[9] |
| End of mission | |
| Landing date | April 12, 1961, 07:55 UTC |
| Landing site | 51°16′14″N 45°59′50″E / 51.270682°N 45.99727°E[10][11] |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric |
| Regime | Low Earth |
| Perigee altitude | 181 km (98 nmi)[12] |
| Apogee altitude | 327 km (177 nmi)[1] |
| Inclination | 64.95 degrees[8] |
| Period | 89.1 minutes |
| Epoch | April 12, 1961 |
 Yuri Gagarin in Sweden | |
Vostok 1 (Russian: Восток, East or Orient) was the first spaceflight of the Vostok programme and the first human orbital spaceflight in history. The Vostok 3KA space capsule was launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome on 12 April 1961, with Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin aboard, making him the first human to reach orbital velocity around the Earth and to complete a full orbit around the Earth.
The orbital spaceflight consisted of a single orbit around Earth which skimmed the upper atmosphere at 169 kilometers (91 nautical miles) at its lowest point. The flight took 108 minutes from launch to landing. Gagarin parachuted to the ground separately from his capsule after ejecting at 7 km (23,000 ft) altitude.
- ^ a b c "Aviation and Space World Records". Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI). Archived from the original on July 26, 2009. Retrieved March 12, 2009.
- ^ "Spaceflight mission report: Vostok 1". Spacefacts. 11 August 2020. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
- ^ "The Vostok (3A No. 3) mission". Retrieved 12 March 2020.
Gagarin's mission lasted 106 minutes, not 108 minutes, the duration that was reported for 50 years and even made book titles.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
siddiqi2000was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Yenne, Bill (1988). The Pictorial History of World Spaceflight. Exeter. p. 18. ISBN 0-7917-0188-3.
- ^ Swenson, Loyd S. Jr.; Grimwood, James M.; Alexander, Charles C. "This New Ocean: A History of Project Mercury, Chapter 10, Section: "Vostok Wins the First Lap"". NASA.
- ^ "Why was Apollo called Apollo? The history of spacecraft call signs". Royal Museums Greenwich.
- ^ a b "Vostok 1 – NSSDC ID: 1961-012A". NASA.
- ^ "Google Maps – Vostok 1 Launch Pad – Gagarin's Start photo". Retrieved 25 December 2010.
- ^ "Google Maps – Vostok 1 Landing Site – Monument". Retrieved 25 December 2010.
- ^ "Google Maps – Vostok 1 Landing Site – Monument Photo". Retrieved 25 December 2010.
- ^ Records file on the first space flight by the USSR citizen Youri Alexeyvich Gagarin (PDF). The USSR Central Aero Club. 1961.
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).