Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. First Man in Space

Panther Books proudly present the first independent Western evaluation of the Russian space programme and the flight of Major Yuri Gagarin — the first man into space. This is not simply Gagarin’s life story; it is the history of the whole Soviet effort in this field, with its problems, its successes and its failures. For the fist time: Gagarin himself, in the first private interview that the Russians allowed with Western journalists, describes his feelings during his historic 108-minute orbit of the world.
The answers to the questions: Why are the Russians ahead?
What will they do next? What is their national policy on space research?
Why is the West behind?
Russian scientists give their opinion of the U.S. efforts, comparing them with their own.
Russian biologists depict fully the extraordinary training of animals and men for space flight.
Details are given of the construction and equipment of their space-ships, together with an account of the experiments which led up to the final designs and the first prototype of a manned rocket. .
In this fascinating and important book, the authors have uncovered and presented the facts.
Contents:
introduction: Interview with Professor Fyodorov, one of the leading scientists in charge of the Soviet Space Programme.
Welcome Home.
Take-off.
U.S. V. U.S.S.R.
The First Russian Rocketeer.
Rockets in War and the Early Sputniks.
Tracking—New Chain of Sky-spies.
Space-dogs, their School and Training; the Historic Flight of Strelka and Belka.
Gagarin.
Gagarin: the Training of a Cosmonaut.
“108 Minutes”.
Gagarin: the First Interview with Western Journalists.
The Moon Next?
The Robot Brains that Think.
Mars? Theories and Probabilities of Life on the Planet.
Venus Probe.
Science Fiction in Russia.
Profit and Loss.
About the Authors.
Index.