 "Cosmonautics Day: Russia celebrates its space legacy with hopes for a new space station by 2030")
As Russia commemorates the 64th anniversary of the first human space flight by Yuri Gagarin (USSR), it is also preparing itself for what the future holds in space exploration. One of the goals of the country in this regard is sending a new space station. While speaking to Firstpost, Russian Pilot-Cosmonaut Denis Mateev said he looks forward to the mission.
The remarks from the Russian cosmonaut came during a Q&A session at the Russian Centre of Science and Culture in Delhi. Mateeve was a special guest at an event organised by the Russian House to commemorate Gagarin’s feat that happened 64 years ago. The Russian delegation celebrated the International Day of Human Space Flight by installing a bronze plaque, which depicted the founders of cosmonautics Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, Sergei Korolev and Yuri Gagarin.
The event was attended by the Russian Ambassador to India Denis Alipov, the head of the Rossotrudnichestvo representative office in New Delhi Dr Elena Remizova, Hero of Russia, cosmonaut Denis Matveev, and the representative of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) Rajiv Kumar Jaiswal.
Russia hopes to launch the first module of its new space station by 2027
When asked about Russia’s plans to launch its new space station, Cosmonaut Mateev shared with Firstpost what’s on the cards. “According to the plans that we’ve got right now, we launch the first module of a station at the end of 2027, and we launch the first crew to that first module in the middle of 2028, and the second crew at the end of 2028. Then we develop our own station,” Mateev told Firstpost.
While speaking to the media, the Russian cosmonaut explained what it was like to be in space, whether staying in zero gravity affects health and what kind of training astronauts and cosmonauts undergo before going to space.
During the Saturday event, the delegates noted how Russia remains one of India’s leading partners in the space field. One of the highlights of the event was the screening of a Russian film called “The Challenge”. The 2023 thriller/adventure movie was shot in space.
Cosmonautics Day is a source of pride: Russian envoy
While addressing the gathering following the plaque inauguration ceremony, Russian Ambassador to India Denis Alipov emphasised how Cosmonautics Day is a source of pride for Moscow. “This day is a source of national pride for Russia and is a powerful symbol of the shared aspiration to explore outer space in the spirit of peace, science and progress. Our achievements made Russia the leader in space exploration. Amongst such achievements is the first flight to space by an Indian cosmonaut, Rakesh Sharma in 1984, who joined a Soviet crew on board the Soyuz T-11 spacecraft,” he recalled.
“Rakesh Sharma became a rock-solid symbol of the legendary journey that our two friendly countries jointly undertake, and I would like also to remember such legends like Yuri Gagarin, for whom we are installing the plate today, and also Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, who was also a long-standing chairman of the Soviet and then Russia Friendship Society with foreign countries. I believe that we can dedicate today’s ceremony in her honour as well,” he furthered.
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More ShortsWhile welcoming Dr Jaiswal, Ambassador Alipov called India one of the leaders in space exploration. He also emphasised that Russia is learning a lot from India in modern space exploration. “India is now one of the leaders in space exploration, and Russia now is learning a lot from India in space exploration. I think this is a very heartening and very notable matter, and I am absolutely sure that we will continue to cooperate in manned space exploration in various other areas, together with satellite navigation and many other areas,” the ambassador concluded.
The International Day of Human Space Flight is the annual celebration, held on April 12. It marks the first human space flight by Yuri Gagarin and received International recognition at the 65th session of the United Nations General Assembly on 7 April 2011, a few days before the 50th anniversary of the flight.
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