Iuri Gagarin: the road to space — 108 minutes that changed the world On April 12, 1961, a simple Russian boy from the village of Klušino took a step into infinity. His smile became a symbol of the Soviet Union, and his flight the greatest technological breakthrough of the 20th century. Iuri Alekseevich Gagarin (1934–1968) — a man whose name is known on all continents. His first space flight forever inscribed him in history, transforming him from an unknown pilot into a mythological figure. But behind the triumph stood titanic work, risk, and the unique character of a man who brought his life's work to perfection. 108 minutesduration of the first space flight Childhood and the choice of path Iuri Gagarin was born on March 9, 1934, in the village of Klušino in Smolensk Oblast in a peasant family. His childhood coincided with the difficult wartime years. Occupation, ruins, constant hunger — all this tempered his character. After the war, the family moved to Gzhatsk (now Gagarin), where Yury became interested in aeromodelling, and then entered the Saratov Industrial Technical College and simultaneously the aeroclub. In 1955, Gagarin made his first solo flight on a Yak-18. After graduating from the First Chkalov Military Aviation School of Pilots in Orenburg with honors, he became a fighter pilot. Space then seemed like science fiction, but it was the talent and calmness of the young lieutenant that attracted selectors. Selection and the Gagarin smile In 1959, in the Soviet Union, a secret selection began for the first cosmonaut detachment. The criteria were strict: age up to 35 years, height not exceeding 170 cm (due to the size of the "Vostok" spacecraft), excellent health, ideal flying training, and weight up to 72 kg. Out of three thousand candidates, twenty were selected, and then six, who began final training. Gagarin was not the strongest physically. For example, German Titov showed better results in the centrifuge and thermocamera. But Gagarin possessed som ... Read more