By the Numbers
Since Yuri Gagarin became the first human in space on 12 April 1961, over 680 people from more than 45 countries have reached space (using the internationally recognised Kármán line of 100 km altitude). The pace has accelerated dramatically in recent years with commercial programmes from SpaceX, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic opening access beyond government-selected crews.
Astronauts by Country
The overwhelming majority of people who have reached space are from the United States and Russia (including the Soviet Union), though international participation has grown steadily through ISS partnership agreements, guest cosmonaut programmes and commercial flights.
| Country | Approximate Total | Agency / Programme |
|---|---|---|
| 🇺🇸 United States | ~370 | NASA, USAF, commercial (SpaceX, Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic, Axiom) |
| 🇷🇺 Russia / USSR | ~130 | Roscosmos (formerly Soviet space programme) |
| 🇨🇳 China | ~25 | CMSA — Shenzhou / Tiangong programme |
| 🇯🇵 Japan | ~15 | JAXA — ISS expeditions, Shuttle missions |
| 🇨🇦 Canada | ~14 | CSA — Shuttle missions, ISS long-duration flights |
| 🇩🇪 Germany | ~12 | ESA / DLR — Spacelab, Mir, ISS |
| 🇫🇷 France | ~10 | ESA / CNES — Salyut, Mir, ISS, Shuttle |
| 🇮🇹 Italy | ~7 | ESA / ASI — Shuttle, ISS |
| 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | ~3 | ESA (Tim Peake), private (Helen Sharman via Soviet programme) |
| 🇮🇳 India | 1 | Rakesh Sharma (1984, Soviet guest cosmonaut); Gaganyaan crewed programme in development |
Spaceflight Records & Milestones
| Record | Holder | Details |
|---|---|---|
| First human in space | Yuri Gagarin (USSR) | Vostok 1, 12 April 1961 — single orbit of Earth |
| First woman in space | Valentina Tereshkova (USSR) | Vostok 6, 16 June 1963 — 48 orbits over 3 days |
| First spacewalk (EVA) | Alexei Leonov (USSR) | Voskhod 2, 18 March 1965 — 12 minutes outside the spacecraft |
| First Moon landing | Neil Armstrong & Buzz Aldrin (USA) | Apollo 11, 20 July 1969 |
| Most time in space (cumulative) | Oleg Kononenko (Russia) | Over 1,110 days across five missions |
| Longest single spaceflight | Valeri Polyakov (Russia) | 437 days aboard Mir (1994–1995) |
| Most spaceflights | Multiple (7 flights) | Franklin Chang-Díaz (USA) and Jerry Ross (USA) each flew 7 Shuttle missions |
| Most EVAs | Anatoly Solovyev (Russia) | 16 spacewalks totalling 82+ hours |
| Oldest person in space | William Shatner | 90 years old, Blue Origin NS-18 (October 2021) |
| First all-civilian orbital crew | Inspiration4 | SpaceX Crew Dragon, September 2021 |
| First commercial space station crew | Axiom Mission 1 (Ax-1) | SpaceX Crew Dragon to ISS, April 2022 |
NASA Astronaut Corps
NASA's active astronaut corps currently numbers around 44 members, selected across 23 classes since the original Mercury Seven in 1959. Astronaut candidates undergo approximately two years of training at the Johnson Space Center in Houston before becoming eligible for flight assignment. Since the retirement of the Space Shuttle in 2011, NASA astronauts reach orbit aboard SpaceX Crew Dragon.
Roscosmos Cosmonaut Corps
Russia has maintained a continuous crewed spaceflight capability since 1961. Cosmonauts are selected and trained at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre (Star City) near Moscow. As of 2026, Soyuz remains the only active Russian crewed vehicle, carrying cosmonauts and international partner astronauts to the ISS. Russia plans to continue ISS operations while developing the planned ROSS (Russian Orbital Service Station).
Chinese Taikonauts
China's taikonaut corps is selected and trained by the People's Liberation Army Astronaut Centre in Beijing. The programme has grown from a small group of military test pilots to include mission specialists and payload experts. China conducts regular crew rotations to Tiangong, typically every six months via Shenzhou spacecraft launched from Jiuquan. Yang Liwei became China's first taikonaut in 2003 aboard Shenzhou 5.
ESA Astronaut Corps
The European Space Agency maintains a small but active astronaut corps, most recently expanded through a 2022 selection that added five career astronauts and a reserve pool. ESA astronauts fly to the ISS as part of long-duration expedition crews, typically launching on SpaceX Crew Dragon. Notable ESA astronauts include Thomas Pesquet (France), Samantha Cristoforetti (Italy) and Alexander Gerst (Germany).
Commercial & Private Spaceflight
The rise of commercial spaceflight has rapidly expanded the number of people reaching space. SpaceX has flown multiple private crews on Crew Dragon (Inspiration4, Polaris Dawn, Axiom missions). Blue Origin's New Shepard has carried paying passengers on suborbital flights. Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo has also begun commercial suborbital tourism operations. These programmes are expected to send hundreds more people to space over the coming decade.