Yuri Gagarin lands at Greenwich Royal Observatory (From News Shopper)

Yuri Gagarin lands at Greenwich Royal Observatory

11:46am Wednesday 13th March 2013 in News By Mark Chandler

THE Royal Observatory's newest attraction has landed - a statue of Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space.

Greenwich will be the statue's permanent home after it was originally sited in London's the Mall.

It shows the Russian cosmonaut in his spacesuit standing on the globe and is a gift to the British people from his home country's federal space agency Roscosmos.

The work was unveiled near the observatory's astronomy centre by his daughter Elena Gagarina in the week of her father's birthday.

Observatory public astronomer Dr Marek Kukula said: "As the home of the Prime Meridian, the Royal Observatory is the place at which eastern and western hemispheres meet, alluding to Gagarin’s status as an extraordinary man who bridged the divide between east and west.

"The presence of his statue underlines Royal Museums Greenwich’s mission - to illustrate for everyone the importance of the sea, ships, time and the stars, and their relationship with people."