Space dialogue: meeting with cosmonauts was held at the National Centre RUSSIA

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The event "Cosmic Dialogue: A Look into the Future" took place on April 10 as part of the author’s project "Thursday. Development" at the National Centre RUSSIA. Guests met with cosmonauts and scientists engaged in research and the development of the space industry.

Speakers included pilot-cosmonaut of the Russian Federation, Hero of Russia, and President of the Centre "Cosmonautics and Aviation" at VDNH Fyodor Yurchikhin, and pilot-cosmonaut of the Russian Federation, Hero of Russia Andrei Fedyayev.

They spoke about the most significant achievements of modern space exploration, shared personal stories of those who have conquered orbit, and offered their perspectives on the future of space research. The meeting was moderated by Yulia Kozlova, host of live broadcasts of the Russian society Znanie and chief moderator of Channel One.

"I made five flights and nine spacewalks. During those, we experienced all sorts of incidents and emergencies. Once, we returned from orbit using a ballistic descent — a backup method where the crew experiences increased g-forces," recalled Fyodor Yurchikhin.

The cosmonauts engaged in a lively dialogue with the guests of the event, answering their questions.

"I have had only one flight so far. The main and most important task completed by our ISS-69 crew was shaping the final configuration of the Russian segment of the station. My teammates were cosmonauts Sergei Prokopyev and Dmitry Petelin. Our main objective was the installation of the MLM module, which had been en route to the station for a long time. In addition, along with another module, a so-called airlock chamber intended for conducting experiments and a radiation heat exchanger were launched. These are very important devices, and the three of us installed them together. The guys went on spacewalks, and I operated the robotic arm," said Andrei Fedyayev.

According to Andrei Fedyayev, another significant achievement for Russian space exploration was the successful completion of a test to move cosmonauts using a robotic manipulator. The Russian crew successfully handled this task.

The event addressed not only the topic of space in general but also the question of humanity’s future beyond planet Earth.

"The main objectives of space exploration today include launching the Russian station into orbit. But what matters is how it gets there. It must not be designed based on technologies from the late 1970s–1980s — otherwise, we will freeze the development of our science and technology. The station must unquestionably be created using new technologies. In my opinion, this is a task for the younger generation. They should be able to see the results of their work," said Fyodor Yurchikhin.

The National Centre RUSSIA’s original programme "Thursday. Development" is a series of educational events where experts from various fields speak about their work, present achievements, share professional experience and advice useful to a broad audience, and answer questions from the floor. The project fosters productive knowledge exchange and the search for like-minded individuals. Previous events have covered topics such as the impact of nutrition on beauty and health, environmental issues and animal protection, the risks of short videos, and much more. The schedule of upcoming events is available at russia.ru.