Akademgorodok (literally “the town of academicians”), founded in 1957, is located about 20 kilometers south of the center of Novosibirsk, on the right bank of the Novosibirsk reservoir.

It is one of the most important scientific and educational centers in Russia. On its territory there are dozens of research institutes, the Presidium of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk State University, and a physics and mathematics school. Photos by: Slava Stepanov.

a town of scientists in the middle of the forest

Tags: Novosibirsk city

The State Museum of the History of Cosmonautics named after K. E. Tsiolkovsky in Kaluga (Akademika Koroleva Street, 2) is the world’s first and largest space museum in Russia, created with the direct participation of S.P. Korolev and Yu. A. Gagarin.

The museum has an extensive exposition telling about the history of aeronautics, aviation, rocket and space technology. Photos by: Sergey Rubtsov.

museum with unique exhibits

Tags: Kaluga city · museum

In the late 1970s, after the closure of the Soviet lunar program and work on the super-heavy carrier rocket N1, the development of a new super-heavy rocket called “Energy” began.

The first launch was made in 1987, and, in 1988, the rocket put into orbit the Soviet space shuttle “Buran.” Photos by: Ralph Mirebs.

abandoned rocket

Tags: Abandoned · Soviet past

June 2, 2015, Baikonur Cosmodrome, the cradle of space exploration and the largest Russian spaceport, celebrated its 60th anniversary. Over the years, a lot of different space vehicles were tested on its territory, the apex of which was the system of “Energy-Buran”. But history has chosen its path and the project died in infancy.

More than two decades ago, heavy sliding doors of an assembling and filling complex were closed cutting off two orbiting spacecraft from the sky. How ironic that the birthplace of these spaceships became their burial place.

the remnants of the Soviet shuttles

Tags: Abandoned · Soviet past

The Vostochny (“Eastern”) Cosmodrome is the future Russian spaceport being constructed near the village of Uglegorsk in Amur region, in the Far East.

In September 2011, the preparatory construction work began, and, in mid-2012, the full-scale construction of infrastructure and technological facilities of the cosmodrome started. Photos by: Stepanov Slava.

walk through the unique construction site

Tags: Amur oblast

Just minutes ago, “Soyuz TMA-16M” spacecraft has been launched from Baikonur cosmodrome to the International Space Station.

The crew includes Russian cosmonauts Gennady Padalka and Mikhail Kornienko and the U.S. astronaut Scott Kelly. The expedition of Kornienko and Kelly will last one year.

more info about the mission

Tags: No tags

Tomorrow, April 12, the world will mark the International Day of Human Space Flight, known as Cosmonautics Day in Russia.

About two weeks before that, March 26, 2014, Russian spacecraft “Soyuz TMA-12M” with two Russian cosmonauts (Alexander Skvortsov and Oleg Artemyev) and one NASA astronaut (Steve Swanson) was launched from Baikonur cosmodrome to the International Space Station. Photos by Slava Stepanov

rocket launch from Baikonur

Tags: No tags

Currently this place is known as the All-Russian Exhibition Centre – exhibition complex in the northeast region of Moscow, the second largest exhibition center in Moscow. In Soviet times, this complex was known as the Exhibition of Achievements of National Economy of the USSR.

Since 1967, the latest models of Soviet space technology were exhibited in a special pavilion “Space”. It was the pride of Soviet science and technology. These pictures were taken by Rob Ketcherside in 1969 at the peak of interest in space travel. The photos were originally published in sovietdetstvo

(more…)

Tags: Moscow city · Soviet past

Abandoned Research Institute of Corrosion is located somewhere in the Moscow region. The institute was working on studying the effects of different environments and conditions on certain substances.

In the late 1980s due to lack of funding the institute was closed. Now this is the place where you can feel the atmosphere of the Soviet Union.

(more…)

Tags: Abandoned · Moskovskaya oblast

Soyuz Commander Anton Shkaplerov, NASA Flight Engineer Dan Burbank and Russian Flight Engineer Anatoly Ivanishin launched on the Russian Soyuz TMA-22 spacecraft on November 14, 2011, (November 13 in the United States) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan to begin a two-day journey to the International Space Station.

Interesting video about the launch and the last preparations.

Tags: No tags