Gherman Titov

Gherman Stepanovich Titov, a Soviet and Russian cosmonaut, became the second human to orbit Earth on 6 August 1961, flying aboard Vostok 2. Yuri Gagarin had preceded him on Vostok 1. Counting the suborbital flights of American astronauts Alan Shepard and Gus Grissom, Titov was the fourth person in space. Born in Altai Krai in western Siberia, he was the first spacefarer born in Asia. At 25 years old at launch, he still holds the record as the youngest professional astronaut and the youngest person to reach Earth orbit.

His mission demonstrated that humans could live and work in space. Titov was the first to complete multiple orbits—17 in total—and to spend over a day in space. He also became the first person to sleep in orbit and the first to experience space sickness, making him the first to vomit in space. He took the first photographs of Earth from space captured by a human and, using a professional Konvas-Avtomat movie camera, filmed the Earth for ten minutes—another first.

After his flight, Titov remained with the Soviet space program. He trained under the Spiral program to become the first pilot of an orbital spaceplane. However, following Yuri Gagarin’s death in a 1968 fighter jet crash, the Soviet government decided it could not risk losing its second cosmonaut, ending Titov’s test-pilot career. He served in the Soviet Air Force, reaching the rank of colonel-general. Retiring in 1992, he entered politics as a member of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation and was elected to the State Duma in 1995. Although chosen second to fly into space, it was Titov who proposed that the Soviet government regularly celebrate Cosmonautics Day on 12 April, the date of Gagarin’s flight.

Born in the village of Verkhneye Zhilino in Altai Krai, Titov attended the Stalingrad Military Aviation School. After qualifying as an air force pilot, he was selected for cosmonaut training in 1960. His Vostok 2 mission launched on 6 August 1961, lasting 25.3 hours and completing 17 orbits. His call sign was Eagle (Орёл). He landed near Krasny Kut in Saratov Oblast, Russia. At launch, he was a month short of 26 years old, making him the youngest professional astronaut and person to fly to Earth orbit—a record that stood until July 2021, when Dutch teenager Oliver Daemen surpassed it. Titov was a member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, like nearly all Soviet cosmonauts.

Titov was an accomplished sportsman, particularly keen on gymnastics. He once noted that service in the Air Force made cosmonauts physically and morally strong, and that sports were a fixture in their lives. He was the first person to suffer space sickness and the first to sleep in orbit. He slept for roughly one orbit and woke surprised to find his arms floating due to the lack of gravity. After tucking his arms under a security belt, he slept 30 minutes longer than planned, later remarking that space sleep was fine once limbs were arranged properly.

Despite his space sickness, Titov celebrated upon landing with a fit of euphoria. On the return flight to Kubishev for debriefing, he alarmed medical staff by opening and drinking a beer, violating all rules. After landing, he was hospitalized for further testing. Following his mission, he reportedly engaged in behavior considered unacceptable for someone in the space program, including a love of women, excessive drinking, and fast cars. Some theorized this was a side effect of space sickness, but further testing disproved that.

During a widely publicized 1962 visit to Seattle for the Century 21 World’s Fair, reporters asked how his space flight affected his philosophy. He replied that he had looked around all day but found neither angels nor God. The statement was used in Soviet anti-religion propaganda but was misattributed to Yuri Gagarin.

After his space flight, Titov held various senior positions in the Soviet space program until his retirement in 1992. In 1995, he was elected to the State Duma as a member of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation. He died of cardiac arrest in his sauna in Moscow on 20 September 2000, at age 65, and was buried in Novodevichy Cemetery.

Titov received the title Hero of the Soviet Union, two Orders of Lenin, and numerous medals and foreign orders, including Hero of Socialist Labor of Bulgaria, Hero of Labour of Viet Nam, and Hero of Mongolia. A crater on the far side of the Moon and an island in Ha Long Bay bear his name. On 6 August 2011, the 50th anniversary of his flight, the reconstructed and expanded Gherman Titov Museum opened in his native village of Polkovnikovo, Altai Krai. The Titov Space Centre is also named after him.

In Arthur C. Clarke’s 1982 book *2010: Odyssey Two* (and the 1984 film adaptation), the opening scene includes a conversation referencing Titov.