Gagarin, Yuri Alekseyevich, gah GAHR ihn, YOOR ee ah leh KSEH yuh vihch (1934-1968), a Soviet air force pilot, was the first human to travel in space. Gagarin circled the earth on April 12, 1961, at a speed of more than 17,000 mph (27,400 kph). The trip lasted 1 hour and 48 minutes. His spacecraft Vostok 1 was in orbit for 89.1 minutes. At the highest point, Gagarin was about 203 miles (327 kilometers) above the earth. He was killed in a plane crash in 1968.