Editing Vostok 1 (section)

==Reactions and legacy==
[[File:Semyorka Rocket R7 by Sergei Korolyov in VDNH Ostankino RAF0540.jpg|thumb|A copy of the Vostok rocket]]
[[File:Gagarin-skafander.jpg|thumb|Gagarin's spacesuit]]

===Soviet reaction===
Gagarin's flight was announced while Gagarin was still in orbit, by [[Yuri Levitan]], the leading Soviet radio personality since the 1930s. Although news of Soviet rocket launches would normally be aired only after the fact, [[Sergei Korolev]] wrote a note to the Party Central Committee to convince them that the announcement should be made as early as possible:
<blockquote>
"We consider it advisable to publish the first [[TASS]] report immediately after the satellite-spacecraft enters orbit, for the following reasons:

(a) if a rescue becomes necessary, it will facilitate rapid organization of a rescue;

(b) it precludes any foreign government declaring that the cosmonaut is a military scout."<ref name="HarfordTASS">{{cite book |last1=Harford |first1=James |title=Korolev: How One Man Masterminded the Soviet Drive to Beat America to the Moon |date=8 April 1997 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=0-471-32721-2 |page=169}}</ref>
</blockquote>
The flight was celebrated as a great triumph of Soviet science and technology, demonstrating the superiority of the socialist system over capitalism. Moscow and other cities in the USSR held mass demonstrations, the scale of which was comparable to [[Moscow Victory Parade of 1945|World War II Victory Parades]]. Gagarin was awarded the title of [[Hero of the Soviet Union]], the nation's highest honour. He also became an international celebrity, receiving [[Yuri Gagarin#Awards and honours|numerous awards and honours]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Pervushin |first=Anton |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kMGlvz53P3cC&dq=%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BC%D0%BE%D0%BD%D1%81%D1%82%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%86%D0%B8%D0%B8+%D0%B2+%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BD%D1%8C+%D0%BA%D0%BE%D1%81%D0%BC%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%B2%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%B8&pg=PT488 |title=108 минут, изменившие мир |date=2011-04-12 |publisher=Litres |isbn=978-5-457-02230-0 |language=ru |trans-title=108 Minutes That Changed the World |chapter=7.1 Гражданин мира |trans-chapter=7.1 Citizen of the World}}</ref>

April 12 was declared [[Cosmonautics Day]] in the USSR, and is celebrated today in Russia as one of the official "Commemorative Dates of Russia."<ref name="32FZ">{{Cite Russian law
|ru_entity=Государственная Дума
|ru_type=Федеральный закон
|ru_number=32-ФЗ
|ru_date=13 марта 1995 г.
|ru_title=О днях воинской славы и памятных датах России
|ru_effective_date=со дня официального опубликования
|ru_published_in="Российская Газета", No.52
|ru_published_date=15 марта 1995 г
|ru_url=http://ntc.duma.gov.ru/duma_na/asozd/asozd_text.php?code=22479
|ru_amendment_type=Федерального закона
|ru_amendment_number=59-ФЗ
|ru_amendment_date=10 апреля 2009 г
|ru_amendment_title=О внесении изменения в статью 1.1 федерального закона "О днях воинской славы и памятных датах России"
|en_entity=[[State Duma]]
|en_type=Federal Law
|en_number=32-FZ
|en_date=March 13, 1995
|en_title=On the Days of Military Glory and the Commemorative Dates in Russia
|en_effective_date=the day of the official publication
|en_url
|en_amendment_type=Federal Law
|en_amendment_number=59-FZ
|en_amendment_date=April 10, 2009
|en_amendment_title=On Amending Article&nbsp;1.1 of the Federal Law "On the Days of Military Glory and the Commemorative Dates in Russia"
}}</ref> In 2011, it was declared the [[International Day of Human Space Flight]] by the [[United Nations]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/en/events/humanspaceflightday/ |title=UN Resolution A/RES/65/271, The International Day of Human Space Flight (12 April) |date=April 7, 2011 |access-date=January 19, 2015}}</ref>

Gagarin's informal reply ''Poyekhali!'' ("Let's go!") became a historical phrase used to refer to the arrival of the [[Space Age]] in human history.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Pervushin |first=Anton |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kMGlvz53P3cC&q=%D0%BE%D0%BD+%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B0%D0%B7%D0%B0%D0%BB+%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%B5%D1%85%D0%B0%D0%BB%D0%B8&pg=PT440 |title=108 минут, изменившие мир |date=2011-04-12 |publisher=Litres |isbn=978-5-457-02230-0 |language=ru |trans-title=108 Minutes That Changed the World |chapter=6.2. Он сказал «Поехали!» |trans-chapter=6.2. He said, "Let's go!"}}</ref> Later it was included in the refrain of a Soviet song {{ill|Do You Know What Kind of Guy He Was|ru|Знаете, каким он парнем был}} written by [[Alexandra Pakhmutova]] and [[Nikolai Dobronravov]] (''He said "Let's go!" He waved his hand'') which was dedicated to the memory of Gagarin.<ref>{{cite book |last=Dushenko |first=Konstantin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UZqhAAAAQBAJ&q=%D0%B3%D0%B0%D0%B3%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BD&pg=PT920 |title= |publisher=Litres |year=2014 |isbn=978-5-699-40115-4 |language=ru |script-title=ru:Большой словарь цитат и крылатых выражений |trans-title=A large dictionary of quotes and catchphrases}}</ref><ref name=":1" />

===American reaction===
Officially, the U.S. congratulated the Soviet Union on its accomplishments.<ref>{{cite episode |transcript=U.S. in Space |series=1961 Year in Review |network=[[UPI]] Audio Network |transcript-url=http://www.upi.com/Audio/Year_in_Review/Events-of-1961/12295509433760-1}}</ref> Writing for ''[[The New York Times]]'' shortly after the flight, however, journalist [[Arthur Krock]] described mixed feelings in the United States due to fears of the spaceflight's potential military implications for the [[Cold War]],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Krock |first=Arthur |date=1961-04-14 |title=In The Nation; Concentration of Science on Outer Space |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1961/04/14/archives/in-the-nation-concentration-of-science-on-outer-space.html |access-date=2025-01-13 |work=The New York Times |page=28 |issn=0362-4331 |quote=But because of the distrust that now exists among the great nations, and has plunged them into huge programs of deadly rearmament, an achievement by one which carries a clear and direct potential of military supremacy engenders fear of its use.... And so it has become as impossible for either of the groups divided by the Cold War to welcome unreservedly such feats as Major Gagarin's in the opposite camp.}}</ref> and the ''[[Detroit Free Press]]'' wrote that "the people of Washington, London, Paris and all points between might have been dancing in the streets" if it were not for "doubts and suspicions" about Soviet intentions.<ref name="nytimes-reactions"/> Other US writers were concerned that the spaceflight had gained a propaganda victory on behalf of communism. President [[John F. Kennedy]] was quoted as saying that it would be "some time" before the US could match the Soviet [[launch vehicle]] technology, and that "the news will be worse before it's better." Kennedy also sent congratulations to the Soviet Union for their "outstanding technical achievement."<ref name="nytimes-man-in-space">{{Cite news |date=April 16, 1961 |title=Man in Space |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1961/04/16/archives/man-in-space.html |access-date=2025-01-13 |work=The New York Times |page=E1 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Schwartz |first=Harry |date=1961-04-16 |title=MOSCOW: Flight Is Taken as Another Sign That Communism Is the Conquering Wave |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1961/04/16/archives/moscow-flight-is-taken-as-another-sign-that-communism-is-the.html |access-date=2025-01-13 |work=The New York Times |page=E3 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Opinion pages of many US newspapers urged renewed efforts to overtake the Soviet scientific accomplishments.<ref name="nytimes-reactions">{{Cite news |date=April 16, 1961 |title=Opinion of the Week: At Home and Abroad |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1961/04/16/archives/opinion-of-the-week-at-home-and-abroad.html |access-date=2025-01-13 |work=The New York Times |page=E11 |issn=0362-4331}} Quotes of reactions from many US and international sources.</ref>

[[Adlai Stevenson II|Adlai Stevenson]], then the US ambassador to the United Nations, was quoted as saying, "Now that the Soviet scientists have put a man into space and brought him back alive, I hope they will also help to bring the United Nations back alive," and on a more serious note urged international agreements covering the use of space<ref name="nytimes-reactions"/> (which did not occur until the [[Outer Space Treaty]] of 1967).

Astronaut [[Alan Shepard]], who was originally scheduled to become the first person in space but had [[Mercury-Redstone 3|his mission]] delayed six times due to preparatory work, was infuriated by the news and slammed his fist down on a table.<ref name="Thompson 2004">{{cite book |last=Thompson |first=Neal |author-link=Neal Thompson |url=https://archive.org/details/lightthiscandlel00thom |title=Light This Candle: The Life & Times of Alan Shepard, America's First Spaceman |date=2004 |publisher=Crown Publishers |isbn=0-609-61001-5 |edition=1st |location=New York |pages=282 |lccn=2003015688 |oclc=52631310}}</ref>

===Other world reactions===
Prime Minister [[Jawaharlal Nehru]] of [[India]] praised the Soviet Union for "a great victory of man over the forces of nature"<ref name=nytimes-man-in-space/> and urged that it be "considered as a victory for peace." ''[[The Economist]]'' voiced worries that orbital platforms might be used for [[Pre-emptive nuclear strike|surprise nuclear attacks]]. The ''[[Svenska Dagbladet]]'' in Sweden chided "free countries" for "splitting up and frittering away" their resources, while [[West Germany]]'s ''[[Die Welt]]'' argued that America had the resources to have sent a man into space first but was beaten by Soviet purposefulness. Japan's ''[[Yomiuri Shimbun]]'' urged "that both the United States and the Soviet Union should use their new knowledge and techniques for the good of mankind," and [[Egypt]]'s ''[[Akhbar El Yom]]'' likewise expressed hopes that the cold war would "turn into a peaceful race in infinite space" and turn away from armed conflicts such as the [[Laotian Civil War]].<ref name="nytimes-reactions"/>

[[Charles de Gaulle]] claimed that "the success of Soviet scientists and astronauts does honor to Europe and humanity".<ref name="kprf">{{cite news |date=2011-04-12 |title=Юрий Гагарин – первый человек в космосе. 50 лет со дня первого полёта |trans-title=Yuri Gagarin – the first man in space. 50 years since the first flight |url=http://www.kprf-egorlyk.ru/news/73-50-let-poletu-v-kosmos.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120107063700/http://www.kprf-egorlyk.ru/news/73-50-let-poletu-v-kosmos.html |archivedate=2012-01-07 |publisher=retroportal.ru |language=ru}}</ref> [[Sukarno]], the President of the [[Republic of Indonesia]], said that "that delightful event opens up new prospects for human thought and activity, which will be put at the service of the progress and well-being of people, international peace as a whole." [[Zhou Enlai]], head of the State Council of the [[China|People's Republic of China]], and [[Kim Il Sung]], Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of the [[DPRK]], described the successes of Soviet science as "a brilliant symbol of the triumph of socialism and communism." The chairman of the Council of Ministers of [[Cuba]], [[Fidel Castro]], sent a telegram to Khrushchev as follows: "Let this victory of his become the victory of all mankind, which men and women in all corners of the earth perceived as the greatest hope for the destinies of freedom, prosperity and peace."<ref name="tasst">{{Cite web |title="Великий триумф Советского Союза". Высказывания иностранных политиков о полете Гагарина |trans-title="The Great Triumph of the Soviet Union." Statements by Foreign Politicians on Gagarin's Flight |url=https://tass.ru/info/11116465 |access-date=2024-12-25 |website=TASS |language=ru}}</ref>

The President of the [[Chinese Academy of Sciences]], [[Guo Moruo]], wrote a poem 《歌颂东方号》 ("Hymn to the Vostok Spacecraft"), which was published in ''[[Pravda]]''.<ref>{{cite journal |date=1961 |title=Го Мо-жо. Гимн космическому кораблю «Восток» |trans-title=Guo Mo-zho. Hymn to the spaceship "Vostok" |journal=New World |language=ru |issue=5 |pages=5–6}}</ref><ref name=kprf/> [[Charlie Chaplin]] and [[Gianni Rodari]] were among those who sent congratulatory telegrams to ''[[Komsomolskaya Pravda]].<ref name="tasst" />''

===World records===
[[Fédération Aéronautique Internationale|FAI]] officially recognized three space records claimed by Gagarin: duration in orbital flight&mdash;108 minutes, greatest altitude in earth orbital flight&mdash;{{convert|327|km|mi nmi}}, greatest mass lifted in earth orbital flight&mdash;{{convert|4725|kg|lb|}}.<ref>{{cite news |title=Space Marks Accorded To Gagarin and Shepard |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1961/07/23/118919502.html?pageNumber=35 |work=The New York Times |page=35 |date=23 July 1961}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-03-22 |title='Let's go!' – FAI celebrates 60th Anniversary of Gagarin's space flight |url=https://www.fai.org/news/60th-anniversary-gagarin-space-flight |access-date=2022-07-18 |website=[[Fédération Aéronautique Internationale]]}}</ref>

The [[Fédération Aéronautique Internationale|FAI]] rules in 1961 required that a pilot must land with the spacecraft to be considered an official spaceflight for the FAI record books.{{r|siddiqi2000}}{{Reference page|page=283}} Although some contemporary Soviet sources stated that Gagarin had parachuted separately to the ground,<ref name="time19610421">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,895299,00.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130204133301/http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,895299,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 4, 2013 |title=The Cruise of the Vostok |magazine=Time |date=April 21, 1961 |access-date=November 5, 2011}}</ref> the Soviet Union officially insisted that he had landed with the Vostok; the government forced the cosmonaut to lie in press conferences, and the FAI certified the flight. The Soviet Union did not admit until 1971 that Gagarin had ejected and landed separately from the Vostok descent module.{{r|siddiqi2000}}{{Reference page|page=283}} Gagarin's spaceflight records were nonetheless certified and reaffirmed by the FAI, which revised its rules, and acknowledged that the crucial steps of the safe launch, orbit, and return of the pilot had been accomplished.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/why-yuri-gagarin-remains-first-man-space-even-though-he-did-not-land-inside-his |title=Why Yuri Gagarin remains the first man in space, even though he did not land inside his spacecraft |last=Lewis |first=Cathleen |date=12 April 2010 |website=National Air and Space Museum |access-date=12 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190618085443/https://airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/why-yuri-gagarin-remains-first-man-space-even-though-he-did-not-land-inside-his |archive-date=18 June 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> Gagarin is internationally recognised as the first human in space and first to orbit the Earth.<ref>{{cite news |date=12 April 2021 |title=Yuri Gagarin: Who was the first person in space? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/56718196 |access-date=13 July 2022 |website=BBC News}}</ref>

===Legacy===
[[File:Gagarin field.jpg|right|thumb|Commemorative monument, Vostok-1 landing site near [[Engels, Saratov Oblast|Engels]], Russia]]
Four decades after the flight, historian Asif S. Siddiqi wrote that Vostok 1

{{blockquote|will undoubtedly remain one of the major milestones in not only the history of space exploration, but also the history of the human race itself. The fact that this accomplishment was successfully carried out by the Soviet Union, a country completely devastated by war just sixteen years prior, makes the achievement even more impressive. Unlike the United States, the USSR had to begin from a position of tremendous disadvantage. Its industrial infrastructure had been ruined, and its technological capabilities were outdated at best. A good portion of its land had been devastated by war, and it had lost about 25 million citizens ... but it was the totalitarian state that overwhelmingly took the lead [in the space race].{{r|siddiqi2000}}{{Reference page|page=282}}|author=Asif S. Siddiqi}}

The landing site is now a monument park. The central feature in the park is a {{convert|25|m|ft|abbr=on}} tall monument that consists of a silver metallic rocketship rising on a curved metallic column of flame, from a wedge shaped, white stone base. In front of this is a 3-meter (9 foot) tall white stone statue of Yuri Gagarin, wearing a spacesuit, with one arm raised in greeting and the other holding a space helmet.<ref>{{cite web |title=Vostok 1 Landing Site – Monument Park Location – Satellite photo |url=https://maps.google.com/maps?t=h&lci=org.wikipedia.en&q=51.270682,45.99727(Vostok+1)&ie=UTF8&ll=51.2709,45.997245&spn=0.000824,0.002594&z=19 |access-date=December 26, 2010 |website=Google Maps}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Vostok 1 Landing Site – Rocket Monument photo |url=https://maps.google.com/maps?ll=51.270508,45.997181&spn=0,0.005187&t=h&z=18&lci=com.panoramio.all&layer=c&cbll=51.270508,45.997181&cbp=12,0,,0,5&photoid=po-43813644 |access-date=December 26, 2010 |website=Google Maps}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Vostok 1 Landing Site – Yuri Gagarin Statue photo |url=https://maps.google.com/maps?ll=51.278777,45.978298&spn=0,0.005187&z=18&lci=com.panoramio.all&layer=c&cbll=51.278777,45.978298&cbp=12,0,,0,5&photoid=po-17440456 |access-date=December 26, 2010 |website=Google Maps}}</ref>

The ''Vostok 1'' re-entry capsule belongs to the [[RKK Energiya museum|S. P. Korolev RSC Energia Museum]] in [[Korolev City]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Corporation Museum |url=https://www.energia.ru/en/corporation/museum.html |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20211125145422/https://www.energia.ru/en/corporation/museum.html |archive-date=2021-11-25 |access-date= |website=www.energia.ru}}</ref> In 2018 it was temporarily loaned to the Space Pavilion at the [[VDNKh (Russia)|VDNKh]] in Moscow.

In 2011, documentary film maker [[Christopher Riley]] partnered with [[European Space Agency]] astronaut [[Paolo Nespoli]] to record a new film of what Gagarin would have seen of the Earth from his spaceship, by matching historical audio recordings to video from the [[International Space Station]] following the [[ground path]] taken by ''Vostok 1''. The resulting film, ''[[First Orbit]]'', was released online to celebrate the 50th anniversary of human spaceflight.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12808771 |title=Movie recreates Gagarin's spaceflight |work=BBC News |first=Jonathan |last=Amos |date=March 23, 2011 |access-date=March 27, 2011}}</ref>