Did a space conference remove Yuri Gagarin's name over Russia's invasion of Ukraine?

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Amidthe ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, a US-based Space Foundation's fundraising event removed the name of Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. The event was held in honour of Gagarin, who is the first man to journey to outer space.

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The report was first published by Futurism citing a now-deleted announcement. The Space Foundation apparently announced: "In light of current world events, the 2022 Space Foundation Yuri's Night is renamed 'A Celebration of Space: Discover What's Next.'"

While the event has been renamed, the aim remains the same as it said in the statement, "The focus of this fundraising event remains the same – to celebrate human achievements in space while inspiring the next generation to reach for the stars."

There hasn't been any official statement from thenonprofit foundation.

Gagarin completed one orbit of Earth on April 12, 1961, and while travelling in the Vostok 1 capsule and achieving the major milestone, he became a global sensation.

Gagarin, who was born on March 9 in 1934, was awarded many medals and titles, including Hero of the Soviet Union, his nation's highest honour.

Meanwhile, three Russian cosmonauts safely arrived at the International Space Station (ISS) on Friday (March 18). The Roscosmāos cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev, Denis Matveev and Sergey Korsakov docked their Soyuz capsule with the outpost for a mission that continues a 20-year shared Russian-US presence in orbit.

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