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Celebrating Cosmonautics Day in Russia: Space Yesterday & Today

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On April 12, Russia is celebrating Cosmonautics Day, which was established in 1962 to commemorate the first manned space flight, when in 1961, a booster rocket took into orbit the Vostok spacecraft with the first cosmonaut on board — Soviet citizen Yuri Gagarin.

In 2011, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the first space flight by Gagarin this date was also declared as the International Day of Human Space Flight. 

Having travelled around the Earth for 1 hour and 48 minutes, the reentry module landed on the territory of the Soviet Union. At an altitude of several miles from the surface of the Earth, Gagarin ejected with a parachute and landed on a field near the Volga River.

Just in time for Cosmonautics Day, Sputnik published the newly declassified archival documents with never-before-seen materials on Yuri Gagarin.

© SputnikThe Vostok-1 spaceship blasting off from the Baikonur space center.
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The Vostok-1 spaceship blasting off from the Baikonur space center.
© SputnikCosmonaut Yuri Gagarin aboard 'Vostok-1' spacecraft.
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Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin aboard 'Vostok-1' spacecraft.
© Sputnik / Go to the mediabankYuri Gagarin preparing for space flight.
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Yuri Gagarin preparing for space flight.
© Sputnik / Go to the mediabankNikita Khrushchev, CPSU Central Committee First Secretary, 2nd right, and his wife Nina, right, receive Yuri Gagarin, the world's first space pilot, 2nd left, and his wife Valentina, left, in the Kremlin.
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Nikita Khrushchev, CPSU Central Committee First Secretary, 2nd right, and his wife Nina, right, receive Yuri Gagarin, the world's first space pilot, 2nd left, and his wife Valentina, left, in the Kremlin.
© Sputnik / Roscosmos / Go to the mediabankRoskosmos Cosmonauts Sergei Volkov and Yury Malenchenko performing extravehicular activities on February 3, 2016.
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Roskosmos Cosmonauts Sergei Volkov and Yury Malenchenko performing extravehicular activities on February 3, 2016.
© Sputnik / Anton Denisov / Go to the mediabankThe descending capsule of the Soyuz TMA-09M spaceship commanded by Roscosmos cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin during the landing.
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The descending capsule of the Soyuz TMA-09M spaceship commanded by Roscosmos cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin during the landing.
© Sputnik / Sergei Savostyanov/TASS/POOL / Go to the mediabankFrom left: Roscosmos cosmonaut, commander of the Soyuz MS-07 manned spacecraft, onboard engineer of ISS-54, commander of ISS-55 Anton Shkaplerov, JAXA astronaut, onboard engineer of the Soyuz MS-07 manned spacecraft, ISS-54/55 onboard engineer Norishige Kanai, and NASA astronaut, onboard engineer of the Soyuz MS-07 manned spacecraft, onboard engineer of ISS-54/55 Scott Tingle ahead of the launch of the Soyuz-FG carrier vehicle with the Soyuz MS-07 manned spacecraft from the Baikonur Space Center.
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From left: Roscosmos cosmonaut, commander of the Soyuz MS-07 manned spacecraft, onboard engineer of ISS-54, commander of ISS-55 Anton Shkaplerov, JAXA astronaut, onboard engineer of the Soyuz MS-07 manned spacecraft, ISS-54/55 onboard engineer Norishige Kanai, and NASA astronaut, onboard engineer of the Soyuz MS-07 manned spacecraft, onboard engineer of ISS-54/55 Scott Tingle ahead of the launch of the Soyuz-FG carrier vehicle with the Soyuz MS-07 manned spacecraft from the Baikonur Space Center.
© Sputnik / Grigoriy Sisoev / Go to the mediabankA Soyuz-FG rocket launches the Soyuz-MS-07 manned spacecraft from the Baikonur Space Center.
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A Soyuz-FG rocket launches the Soyuz-MS-07 manned spacecraft from the Baikonur Space Center.
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