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| NEIL ARMSTRONG (1930- ) |
Armstrong took one small step for man and one giant leap for mankind when, as commander of the Apollo 11 mission, he became the first human to step foot on the moon on July 20, 1969. Armstrong had been a Navy combat pilot and test pilot, and he was onboard the 1966 Gemini 8 mission that was responsible for the first docking in space between two vehicles. He was awarded a Presidential Medal of Freedom and spent much of the 1970s as a professor of aerospace engineering at the University of Cincinnati.
 TIME's July 25, 1969 "Man on the Moon" Cover
Neil Armstrong, 30 Years Later
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| JOHN GLENN (1921- ) |
The most famous of the "Magnificent Seven," as the original Mercury astronauts were known, Glenn had a history of war piloting experience before turning his attention to space and becoming the first American to orbit Earth. He later served as a U.S. senator from his native Ohio and returned to the stars at age 77 aboard the space shuttle Discovery.
John Glenn Bio
40th Anniversary of the Mercury Seven
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| CHUCK YEAGER (1923- ) |
A man with the right stuff if ever there was one, Yeager was a pilot with ice in his veins, whether it be while piloting a combat mission or testing the limits of speed. In October 1947 he became the first man to break the sound barrier and later set another record by reaching Mach 2.44 in 1953. His lack of a college diploma prevented him from being an astronaut but his work testing aircraft that flew higher, faster and farther than any before were an invaluable asset to space exploration.
TIME Cover: April 18, 1949
Chuck Yeager Bio
Official Chuck Yeager Website
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YURI GAGARIN (1934-1968)
A survivor of Nazi occupation and Stalin's harsh regime, Gagarin remains one of Russia's all-time great heroes. An air force pilot in the 1950s, Gagarin became the first man to travel into space when he orbited Earth for 108 minutes aboard Vostok I on April 12, 1961. Seven years later, Gagarin died in a test plane crash.
TIME Cover: April 21, 1961
Guide to Gagarin Online
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BETTMANN/CORBIS
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| SERGEI KOROLEV (1906-1966) |
Perhaps the most influential member in the history of Russia's space program, Korolev was an aeronautical engineer who was imprisoned by Stalin in the late 1930s. When the dictator realized the importance of such research to the war effort, Korolev was released in 1944 and later directed Russia's postwar rocket development. He was responsible for the first satellite launch (Sputnik) and the first manned space flight (Vostok). His work was recognized by his country only after his death.
Sergei Korolev Bio
How Soviets Won First Battle
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