Yuri Gagarin Is First Man in Space
On April 12, 1961, aboard the spacecraft Vostok 1, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to travel into space. A melodramatic telling details Gagarin's historic flight.
Related Speeches & Audio (10)
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Yuri Gagarin Is First Man in Space
Yuri Gagarin Is First Man in SpaceAudio Clip (1:00)
Audio Clip (1:00)
On April 12, 1961, aboard the spacecraft Vostok 1, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to travel into space. A melodramatic telling details Gagarin's historic flight.
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The First Space Flight by a Woman
The First Space Flight by a WomanAudio Clip (0:32)
Audio Clip (0:32)
Radio Moscow announces the historic flight of the first woman in outer space. On June 16, 1963, aboard Vostok 6, Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova completed 48 orbits of Earth in 71 hours.
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USSR Lands First Lunar Spacecraft
USSR Lands First Lunar SpacecraftAudio Clip (0:19)
Audio Clip (0:19)
With Cold War tensions on the rise, NASA's Werhner Von Braun announces the Soviet Union's moon landing, marking Russia's lead in the space race. On February 3, 1966, the unmanned Russian spacecraft Luna 9 touched down on the Ocean of Storms.
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U.S. and Soviets Link Up in Space
U.S. and Soviets Link Up in SpaceAudio Clip (1:35)
Audio Clip (1:35)
U.N. Secretary General Kurt Waldheim congratulates the American and Soviet astronauts for the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. On July 17, 1975, Commanders Thomas P. Safford and Aleksei Leonov shook hands in space.
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Apollo 9 Completes Spacewalk
Apollo 9 Completes SpacewalkAudio Clip (0:46)
Audio Clip (0:46)
After Apollo 9's launch on March 3, 1969, the crew communicates with Mission Control from space. The Apollo 9 mission was a crucial test run for the Apollo 11 moon landing three months later.
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JFK on First American to Orbit Earth
JFK on First American to Orbit EarthAudio Clip (0:29)
Audio Clip (0:29)
On February 20, 1962, Lt. Col. John H. Glenn Jr. became the first American astronaut to orbit Earth. President John F. Kennedy tells the nation that America has reached a new ocean in its race to space.
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Flight of Faith 7 Spacecraft
Flight of Faith 7 SpacecraftAudio Clip (2:02)
Audio Clip (2:02)
Thirty minutes into the Faith 7 spaceflight, a NASA spokesperson recaps the trajectory of the craft after it was launched into orbit just after 8:00 a.m. on May 16, 1963. On board was Gordon Cooper, who became the first American astronaut to spend over 24 hours in space.
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Christmas Eve Broadcast to Earth
Christmas Eve Broadcast to EarthAudio Clip (0:36)
Audio Clip (0:36)
On December 24, 1968, astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and Bill Anders entered into lunar orbit aboard the Apollo 8 spacecraft. That evening, in a live radio and television transmission, Borman reads a passage from the Book of Genesis.
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Apollo 1 Tragedy
Apollo 1 TragedyAudio Clip (0:41)
Audio Clip (0:41)
At a press conference the day after the January 27, 1967, Apollo 1 accident, a NASA spokesperson explains the cause of the flash fire that broke out inside the cabin of the spacecraft during a launch pad test. The vehicle was being prepared for the first piloted space flight. The tragedy ended in the deaths of all three astronauts on board: Lt. Col. Virgil I. Grissom, Lt. Col. Edward H. White and Roger B. Chaffee.
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John F. Kennedy Sets Sights on Moon
John F. Kennedy Sets Sights on MoonAudio Clip (1:18)
Audio Clip (1:18)
In an address at Rice University on September 12, 1962, President John F. Kennedy rallies support for the race to space by telling his fellow Americans that the reason we endeavor to go to the moon is "not because it is easy, but because it is hard."
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Space Race: Cold War Front
Space Race: Cold War FrontVideo Clip (4:21)
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A brief look at the Space Race, set to "Magic Carpet Ride" by Steppenwolf.
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Ask Steve: The Space Program
Ask Steve: The Space ProgramVideo Clip (1:34)
Video Clip (1:34)
In this video clip from Ask Steve, the reason for Americans interest in the Space Program was explored. It is explained that competition, and the technological wonder of the space race were some of the reasons for the Americans interest.
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Buzz Aldrin on Approach to Moon
Buzz Aldrin on Approach to MoonVideo Clip (1:00)
Video Clip (1:00)
In this Tech Effect video, brought to you by the History Channel, Buzz Aldrin talks about the landing of the lunar module during the Apollo 11 mission. He talks about how they only had fifteen seconds of fuel left when they actually landed.
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Crew of Gemini VIII Trains in Zero Gravity
Crew of Gemini VIII Trains in Zero GravityVideo Clip (2:32)
Video Clip (2:32)
In a History Uncut video, watch as the crew aboard the Gemini VIII have fun experiencing zero gravity in March of 1966.
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John Glenn Orbits the Earth
John Glenn Orbits the EarthVideo Clip (2:37)
Video Clip (2:37)
Footage of John Glenn's historic orbit around the Earth on Friendship 7.
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Space Shuttle: The Last Mission
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In 2011, NASA sent a space shuttle into space for the last time. Get all the facts on the history of the U.S. space shuttle program.
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History Rewind: Chimp In Space
History Rewind: Chimp In SpaceVideo Clip (1:53)
Video Clip (1:53)
Rewind Breaking News The History Channel: This is the story of Ham, the first hominid to be launched into space. Ham the chimp is launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida in a Project Mercury Redstone rocket.
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Atlantis Docking Mission, 1995
Atlantis Docking Mission, 1995Video Clip (1:47)
Video Clip (1:47)
In this History Uncut video clip, watch actual video footage of the Atlantis spacecraft's docking mission in June 1995. Listen and see the crew as they prepare to land and say goodbye to their spacecraft.
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The First Space Shuttle Flight
The First Space Shuttle FlightVideo Clip (3:22)
Video Clip (3:22)
On April 12, 1981, NASA launched the first space shuttle into orbit.
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The Space Race
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The U.S. competition with the U.S.S.R. for technological dominance spurred the U.S. on to the first-ever landing on the Moon.
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