Russia is marking the 40th anniversary of the historic journey around the Earth
Archive photo: IP
Yuri Gagarin in the spaceship "Vostok" 1 a few minutes before takeoff. His image is engraved in the national memory
Moscow (Reuters). 108 minutes on April 12, 1961 was a turning point
To Yuri Gagarin and to the world
the whole This is the amount of time it took the first man in space to make the journey
the history around the earth. This journey made the village boy one
of the symbols of the 20th century in the USSR, and surprised the West.
"There are not many achievements that can be compared to Gagarin's mission" says Powell
Popovich, one of the six cosmonauts who were on the original crew of
Gagarin and a friend of the cosmonaut. "It doesn't matter what the person manages to do more
In space, none of the flights will compare to Yuri's."
40 years later, things seem more complicated, due to the financing difficulties
that you are competing heads of space exploration in Russia, and the conflicting priorities
who stopped the development and even claimed victims, such as the crash of a station
The space "Mir" in March, due to lack of budget. The spacemen in Russia are not
Gagarin's success is seen not only as a symbol of national honor from the past, but also
A source of hope for the future.
Part of the fame surrounding Gagarin's character is attributed to his untimely death
In a mysterious plane crash at the age of 34, only seven years after his journey
The history of space. Gagarin's image is engraved in the national memory as a young man
Vibrant, who managed to conquer the hearts of millions in his travels around the world, in the frame
The most successful propaganda campaign ever conducted in the USSR.
Popovich, 70 years old, says that when he first met Gagarin he had
It is clear that the man is destined for greatness. "Yuri was more than smart, easy going,
Hearty, happy, full of joie de vivre and curiosity, a really good guy," he says
Gagarin's colleague and the fourth person the USSR sent into space. "At one
The opportunities asked us who we think should be sent into space first
And we all voted for Gagarin."
Also the planners of the first manned flight into space in the Vostok 1 ship
They could not resist Gagarin's charm. They preferred him over the candidate
The other, German Titov, who in their eyes was too bourgeois to be used as a hero
national. later
For years, Titov said that despite his disappointment, he agreed with Gagarin's choice. "Yuri
He was the favorite of mankind, no one liked me," he said shortly before his death
Last year.
The fortieth anniversary of Gagarin's flight into space is coming up soon
Significant for the nation, just like the day of the flight itself. In a country plagued by hardships
Economic and political in the decade that has passed since the collapse of the USSR, only a few remain
Undisputed national heroes like Gagarin. That's why the authorities are trying
To revive the national pride of those days by organizing ceremonies
In honor of the cosmonauts.
"There has never been and never will be a hero like him," says 13-year-old Dasha
Visiting the museum where props from his flight into space are kept. However, although
The aura of the national hero, Gagarin was not a role model. Officials
Accept the cosmonaut's fondness for the bitter drop and his neophytes, and keep it
This is done in secret so that the image of the national hero is not defamed.
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