Photo location: Moscow — reception and festivities marking Yuri Gagarin’s return following the first crewed space flight in history on April 12, 1961.

Yuri Gagarin after returning to Earth. The photograph shows Yuri Gagarin shortly after his return to Earth on April 12, 1961, in a room at the Baikonur Space Center, while he is speaking on the telephone with Nikita Khrushchev.

Scene: Gagarin wears an olive-green overall and a light-green T-shirt; his face appears relieved and happy following his successful space flight.

Telephone conversation with Khrushchev: He holds the receiver of a fixed telephone while reporting his historic flight to the Soviet government leader.

Background: A simple room with functional furnishings at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, where the first conversations following landing took place.

The photograph symbolizes the successful completion of the first crewed space mission, Gagarin’s relief and pride, as well as the significance of this moment for Soviet leadership and world space exploration history.