Vostok 1, first human space flight, launched 1961

Vostok 1, the first manned space flight, launched April 12, 1961 with Yuri Gagarin.  The space age was born.  Gagarin completed one orbit of Earth and landed about 89 minutes after launch. 

First Space Shuttle Launched 1981!

The launch of the first space shuttle, Columbia (STS-1), took place April 12, 1981, with Commander John Young and Pilot Bob Crippen on board.  They orbited the earth 37 times in just over 2 days.  By coincidence, Columbia was launched on the 20th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's historic spaceflight in Vostok 1. 

Yuri Gagarin, first human in space, born 1934

Boyishly handsome and sporting a killer smile, Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin, born March 9, 1934, was the first man in space.  Although Vostok 1 was his only flight, he remained part of the Soviet space program until his untimely death in 1968.  His flight lasted an hour and 48 minutes and circled the earth once.