satellite Sputnik 1 Space Age cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin Vostok 1 12 April 1961 Soviet Union Russian
In 1957, the Soviet Union launched the world's first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, thus starting the Space Age. Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to orbit the Earth, aboard the Vostok 1 crewed spacecraft on 12 April 1961.
