Cosmonautics Day (russian: День Космона́втики, ''Den Kosmonavtiki'') is an anniversary celebrated in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

and some other former Soviet Union countries on 12 April.Russia marks Cosmonautics Day
Russian Radio, 12 April 2014 In

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

an "International Day of Aviation and Cosmonautics" ( pl, Międzynarodowy Dzień Lotnictwa i Kosmonautyki) is celebrated on the same day. In 2011, at the 65th session of the

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...

, 12 April was declared as the

International Day of Human Space Flight The International Day of Human Space Flight is the annual celebration, held on 12 April, of the anniversary of the first human space flight by Yuri Gagarin (USSR). It was proclaimed at the 65th session of the United Nations General Assembly on 7 A ...

in dedication of the first crewed space flight made on 12 April 1961 by the 27-year-old Russian

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

cosmonaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...

Yuri Gagarin Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin; Gagarin's first name is sometimes transliterated as ''Yuriy'', ''Youri'', or ''Yury''. (9 March 1934 – 27 March 1968) was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut who became the first human to journey into outer space. T ...

. Gagarin circled the Earth for 1 hour and 48 minutes aboard the

Vostok 1 Vostok 1 (russian: link=no, Восток, ''East'' or ''Orient'' 1) was the first spaceflight of the Vostok programme and the first human orbital spaceflight in history. The Vostok 3KA space capsule was launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome on Apr ...

spacecraft.

History

The commemorative day was established in the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

one year later, on 9 April 1962. In modern Russia, it is celebrated in accordance with Article 1.1 of the Law "On the Days of Military Glory and the Commemorative Dates in Russia". Gagarin's flight was a triumph for the

Soviet space program The Soviet space program (russian: Космическая программа СССР, Kosmicheskaya programma SSSR) was the national space program of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), active from 1955 until the dissoluti ...

, and opened a new era in the history of space exploration. Gagarin became a national hero of the Soviet Union and

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc and the Soviet Bloc, was the group of socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America under the influence of the Soviet Union that existed du ...

and a famous figure around the world. Major newspapers around the globe published his biography and details of his flight. Moscow and other cities in the USSR held mass demonstrations, the scale of which was second only to World War II Victory Parades. Gagarin was escorted in a long motorcade of high-ranking officials through the streets of

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

to the

Kremlin The Kremlin ( rus, Московский Кремль, r=Moskovskiy Kreml', p=ˈmɐˈskofskʲɪj krʲemlʲ, t=Moscow Kremlin) is a fortified complex in the center of Moscow founded by the Rurik dynasty. It is the best known of the kremlins (Ru ...

where, in a lavish ceremony, he was awarded the highest Soviet honour, the title of

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union (russian: Герой Советского Союза, translit=Geroy Sovietskogo Soyuza) was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for ...

, by the Soviet leader

Nikita Khrushchev Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (– 11 September 1971) was the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 and chairman of the country's Council of Ministers from 1958 to 1964. During his rule, Khrushchev s ...

. Nowadays the commemoration ceremony on Cosmonautics Day starts in the city of Korolyov, near Gagarin's statue. Participants then proceed under police escort to

Red Square Red Square ( rus, Красная площадь, Krasnaya ploshchad', ˈkrasnəjə ˈploɕːətʲ) is one of the oldest and largest squares in Moscow, the capital of Russia. Owing to its historical significance and the adjacent historical build ...

for a visit to Gagarin's grave in the

Kremlin Wall Necropolis The Kremlin Wall Necropolis was the national cemetery for the Soviet Union. Burials in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis in Moscow began in November 1917, when 240 pro-Bolshevik individuals who died during the Moscow Bolshevik Uprising were buried in ma ...

, and continue to Cosmonauts Alley, near the

Monument to the Conquerors of Space The ''Monument to the Conquerors of Space'' ( rus, Монуме́нт «Покори́телям ко́смоса», r=Monumént "Pokorítelyam kósmosa", p=mənʊˈmʲent pəkɐrʲˈitʲɪlʲɪm ˈkosməsə) is a giant obelisk erected in Mo ...

. Finally, the festivities conclude with a visit to the

Novodevichy Cemetery Novodevichy Cemetery ( rus, Новоде́вичье кла́дбище, Novodevichye kladbishche) is a cemetery in Moscow. It lies next to the southern wall of the 16th-century Novodevichy Convent, which is the city's third most popular touris ...

. In 1968, the 61st conference of the

Fédération Aéronautique Internationale The (; FAI; en, World Air Sports Federation) is the world governing body for air sports, and also stewards definitions regarding human spaceflight. It was founded on 14 October 1905, and is headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland. It maintain ...

resolved to celebrate this day as the World Aviation and Astronautics Day. On 12 April 1981, exactly 20 years after Vostok 1, a

Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program n ...

( STS-1, ''

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region i ...

'') was launched for the first orbital flight, although this was a coincidence as the launch of STS-1 had been delayed for two days. On 7 April 2011, the

adopted a resolution declaring 12 April as the International Day of Human Space Flight. In the 1960s the song ''14 минут до старта'' (" 14 Minutes Until Start") written by Oscar Feltsman and Vladimir Voynovich was considered the unofficial "anthem of cosmonautics" and regularly aired on this day in the USSR. Adapted into a march, it is played in all military parades as a sort of march past of the Russian Space Forces. In the 1980s it was eclipsed by the hit ''Трава у дома'' ("

Grass by the Home Grass by the Home (russian: Трава у дома, Trava u doma) is a 1983 song by former Soviet and Russian music group Zemlyane. The lyrics were written by Anatoly Poperechny and music by Vladimir Migulya. The song tells about cosmonauts in sp ...

") performed by the Russian

VIA Via or VIA may refer to the following: Science and technology * MOS Technology 6522, Versatile Interface Adapter * ''Via'' (moth), a genus of moths in the family Noctuidae * Via (electronics), a through-connection * VIA Technologies, a Taiwa ...

band

Zemlyane Zemlyane (russian: link=no, Земляне, lit=Earthlings) is a Soviet and later Russian rock band, formed in Leningrad in 1978. The band achieved great popularity in the early 1980s and remains active. A key artist in the VIA (vocal-instrument ...

("The Earthlings"). The latter song was awarded the official status of the anthem of Russian Cosmonautics in 2009. Russian cosmonauts have traditionally taken this song with them getting assigned for orbital deployments. Since 2001,

Yuri's Night Yuri's Night is an international celebration held every April 12 to commemorate milestones in space exploration. It is named for the first human to launch into space, Yuri Gagarin, who flew the Vostok 1 spaceship on April 12, 1961. In 2011, Yur ...

, also known as the "World's Space party", is held every 12 April worldwide to commemorate milestones in space exploration. On 12 April 2017, the United Nations commemorated the "International Day of Human Space Flight" to celebrate the 56th anniversary of the first human space flight, which ushered in the beginning of the space era for mankind.

Gallery

File:Vladimir Putin 12 April 2001-3.jpg, Russian president

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

in the House of Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics on Cosmonautics Day 2001 File:Cosmonaut Day festivities.jpg, Russian

Sergei Krikalyov on his way to lay a flower at the base of

's statue in Korolyov on Cosmonautics Day 2002 File:50-th years jubilee of Cosmonautics Day salute.ogv, Fireworks in Moscow to the 50th Anniversary of spaceflight in 2011 In philately and numismatics File:The Soviet Union 1964 CPA 3014 stamp (Space Exploration. Gagarin and Vostok 1).jpg, Soviet

stamp Stamp or Stamps or Stamping may refer to: Official documents and related impressions * Postage stamp, used to indicate prepayment of fees for public mail * Ration stamp, indicating the right to rationed goods * Revenue stamp, used on documents ...

with

, 1964 File:1967 CPA 3476.jpg, Soviet stamp with

Alexei Leonov Alexei Arkhipovich Leonov. (30 May 1934 – 11 October 2019) was a Soviet and Russian cosmonaut, Air Force major general, writer, and artist. On 18 March 1965, he became the first person to conduct a spacewalk, exiting the capsule during t ...

, 1967 File:1972. День космонавтики.jpg, Soviet stamp, 1972 File:The Soviet Union 1990 CPA 6193 stamp (Cosmonautics Day. 'Mir' space complex and cosmonaut).jpg, Soviet stamp with "

Mir ''Mir'' (russian: Мир, ; ) was a space station that operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, operated by the Soviet Union and later by Russia. ''Mir'' was the first modular space station and was assembled in orbit from 1986 to&n ...

" space station, 1990 File:Stamp of Kazakhstan 115.jpg, Kazakh stamp, 1996 File:RR5714-0010R.png, Jubilee coin "50 лет первого полёта человека в космос", Russia, 2011 File:Stamp 2011 Gagarin (1).JPG, Jubilee stamp,

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inva ...

, 2011

References

{{authority control Anniversaries April observances Articles containing video clips Observances in Russia Public holidays in the Soviet Union Science commemorations Space advocacy Space program of Russia Space program of the Soviet Union Spring (season) events in Russia United Nations days Yuri Gagarin

History

Gallery

See also

References