Millions go into orbit on internet with space mission

A film by a British astrophysicist released free on the internet to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first manned mission into space has been downloaded more than two million times in only 48 hours.

First Orbit, by Dr Chris Riley, splices old footage of Yuri Gagarin's 108-minute voyage with new shots of the exact route he would have taken.

The feature-length film was shot by astronaut Paolo Nespoli on board the International Space Station. The station's orbit was changed to mirror the Russian's 1961 flight path. The film was released on Tuesday, to coincide with the anniversary.

Dr Riley, who worked at Imperial College London before embarking on a career making science documentaries for the BBC, said the film was a bid to show exactly what Gagarin would have seen.

However, one notable addition is the moon, which the cosmonaut famously was unable to spot on his voyage.