Lots of buzz shot across the Web yesterday to mark the 50th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin’s celebrated 108-minute spaceflight. That event ushered in a new era, and it’s amazing that we now have a half-century of space exploration under our belts, as well as 108 years of human flight. You probably read a few posts yesterday online summarizing the excitement over Gagarin’s orbital flight April 12, 1961, that made him a hero of the Soviet Union. A mere 7 years later, Gagarin was tragically killed in a jet crash at the age of 34. That fact, and the longtime secretive nature of the Soviets, kept much of his life a relative mystery.
If you would like to know more about Gagarin, I strongly suggest reading Starman: The truth behind the legend of Yuri Gagarin by Jamie Doran and Piers Bizony (256 pp., hardcover, Walker and Co., New York, 2012), which will be published May 1. This first publication in the United States makes available once again what is the standard biography of Gagarin, and it will be essential reading for fans of space exploration. This excellent narrative will keep you enthralled and give you new perspectives on an old name we’re all familiar with.