On April 12, 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first person to orbit the Earth in space. Exactly 20 years later, on April 12, 1981, NASA launched its first Space Shuttle, the first reusable spacecraft. Twenty years after that, on April 12, 2001, a new space milestone connecting thousands of people around the world was initiated, Yuri’s Night. This annual event is a world-wide "space party" to celebrate and honor the past while building a stairway to the future.

For more information about Yuri's Night, go to http://yurisnight.net