Portal:Spaceflight/Selected biography/archive
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Selected Biography: From 8th April 2005 onwards.
Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin (Russian: Юрий Алексеевич Гагарин; March 9, 1934 – March 27, 1968), was a Soviet cosmonaut who in 1961 became the first human to travel into space, as well as orbit the Earth.
Yuri Gagarin was born in Klushino near Gzhatsk, a region west of Moscow, Russia, on March 9, 1934 (the town would be renamed Gagarin in 1968 to honour Yuri), and his parents worked on a collective farm.
After starting an apprenticeship in a metalworks as a foundryman, Gagarin was selected for further training at a high technical school in Saratov. While there, he joined the "AeroClub", and learned to fly a light aircraft, a hobby that began to take up an increasing proportion of his time. After completing his technical schooling, he entered military flight training at the Orenburg Pilot's School. While there he met Valentina Goryacheva, whom he married in 1957, after gaining his pilot's wings in a MiG-15. After graduating, he was posted at an airbase in Murmansk region, near Norwegian border
On April 12, 1961, Gagarin became the first human to travel into space in Vostok 3KA-2 (Vostok 1). His call sign in this flight was Cedar (Russian: Кедр). After the flight, Gagarin became an instant, worldwide celebrity, touring widely to promote the Soviet achievement. On March 27, 1968 he was killed in a crash of a MiG-15 UTI on a routine training flight near Kirzhach together with his instructor. It is uncertain what caused the crash, but a 1986 inquest suggests that the turbulence from a Su-11 interceptor airplane using its afterburners may have caused Gagarin's plane to go out of control.
Selected Biography: From 20th January 2005 until 8th April 2005.
Neil Alden Armstrong (born August 5, 1930) is a former American test pilot and astronaut who was the first man to walk on the Moon.
Armstrong was born near Wapakoneta, Ohio and in his youth became an Eagle Scout and as an adult was recognized by the Boy Scouts of America with their Distinguished Eagle Scout Award and Silver Buffalo Award.
He served in the Korean War as a U.S. Navy fighter pilot.
