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Pioneering Astronauts and Cosmonauts

Gagarin, Armstrong, Glenn or Tereshkova -- who best embodies humanity's leap into space?

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Updated:4/10/2026

#people #space #astronauts #exploration #science #history

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Astronaut/Cosmonaut↕	Nationality↕	Born↕	Died↕	First Mission↕	Year↕	Known For↕
Yuri Gagarin	Soviet	1,934	1968	Vostok 1	1961	First human in space, single orbit of Earth in 108 minutes
Neil Armstrong	American	1,930	2012	Gemini 8	1966	First person to walk on the Moon, one small step for man
Valentina Tereshkova	Soviet	1,937	living	Vostok 6	1963	First woman in space, 48 orbits in nearly 3 days
John Glenn	American	1,921	2016	Mercury-Atlas 6	1962	First American to orbit Earth, returned to space at age 77
Alan Shepard	American	1,923	1998	Mercury-Redstone 3	1961	First American in space, hit a golf ball on the Moon
Buzz Aldrin	American	1,930	living	Gemini 12	1966	Second person on the Moon, pioneered orbital rendezvous techniques
Alexei Leonov	Soviet	1,934	2019	Voskhod 2	1965	First spacewalk (EVA), nearly died when suit inflated in vacuum
Sally Ride	American	1,951	2012	STS-7	1983	First American woman in space, youngest American astronaut at 32
Mae Jemison	American	1,956	living	STS-47	1992	First African American woman in space, physician and engineer
Chris Hadfield	Canadian	1,959	living	STS-74	1995	Space Oddity music video from ISS, first Canadian to walk in space
Peggy Whitson	American	1,960	living	Expedition 5	2002	Most time in space by an American (665 days), ISS commander twice
Yang Liwei	Chinese	1,965	living	Shenzhou 5	2003	First Chinese person in space, national hero
Scott Kelly	American	1,964	living	STS-103	1999	Year in Space mission on ISS, twin study with brother Mark
Rakesh Sharma	Indian	1,949	living	Soyuz T-11	1984	First Indian in space, said India looks saare jahan se achha from orbit
Svetlana Savitskaya	Soviet	1,948	living	Soyuz T-7	1982	Second woman in space, first woman to perform a spacewalk