Astronaut
| Astronaut link | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Someone who is trained to work on a spacecraft. |
An Astronaut is someone who is trained to work on a spacecraft.
Overview
Since 1961, 600 astronauts have flown in space.[1] Until 2002, astronauts were sponsored and trained exclusively by governments, either by the military or by civilian space agencies. Since the suborbital flight of the privately funded SpaceShipOne in 2004, there are also commercial astronauts.
The first human in space (at least officially. Rumors say there were failed attempts before him[2]) was Soviet Yuri Gagarin, who was launched on 12 April 1961, aboard Vostok 1 and orbited around the Earth for 108 minutes.
Moon landings
- Full articles: Apollo program, Document:Wagging the Moondoggie
- Full articles: Apollo program, Document:Wagging the Moondoggie
While low orbit space flights are fairly undisputed, there are questions about the veracity of the Apollo program moon landings 1968-72.