“Earth is the cradle of humanity, but one cannot live in a cradle forever.”

Tsiolkovsky, 1911

Three weeks ago, I organised a trip to the Science Museum in London for the Physics Society to see the Cosmonauts exhibition and stay for the Cosmonaut-themed “lates”. The exhibition was incredible. I learnt a huge amount about space exploration from a Russian perspective during my visit, one that was kept secret until very recently. It’s open until the 13th of March 2016, and would highly recommend visiting if you have the chance.

Visions of Space Exploration

The exhibition kicks off with pieces of history created by Soviet visionaries, such as Tsiolkovsky’s Album of Cosmic Journeys (1933) and selected works by Nikolai Federov. It’s incredible to see what these people thought the space age would look like, years before it began.

This section also contains background information on key figures in the birth of the Space Age, for example the hardships the future Chief Designer Sergei Korolev faced under Stalin’s regime. Interestingly, Korolev was never referred to as the Chief Designer while he was alive, and his death in 1966 signalled the end of the initial glory days of Soviet space exploration. On Sputnik:

“Chief designer Sergei Korolev insisted that the satellite should look impressive, as one day models would be displayed in museums around the world.”

Cosmonauts: Birth of the Space Age exhibition (2016)

A Series of Firsts

Starting with Sputnik 1 in 1957, the Soviet Union raced ahead of the USA, taking in milestone after milestone in space exploration. The Cosmonauts exhibition is filled with objects from these historic achievements, from Vostok 6 (Valentina Tereshkova – first woman in space) to Voskhod 2 (Alexei Leonov – first spacewalk).

“Vineyard owner Henry Maire bet Sergei Korolev a thousand bottles of champagne that he would never send a spacecraft to the far side of the moon. He lost his bet when Luna 3 achieved this goal and Maire duly presented Soviet Russia with the champagne.”

Cosmonauts: Birth of the Space Age exhibition (2016)

There are prototype landers from later missions to other planets, prototypes for the Soviet manned mission to the Moon, now historic equipment from Soviet space stations; yet the exhibition still manages to convey the human side of the story. Not only do you learn about the lives of cosmonauts like Yuri Gagarin, you discover small gems like Alexei Leonov’s artwork and humbling anecdotes about key figures in the space program.

On exit, I couldn’t resist purchasing a few souvenirs from the special edition Cosmonauts gift shop. Notably, I bought Starman: The Truth Behind the Legend of Yuri Gagarin by Jamie Doran and Piers Bizony; an absolutely fascinating read and surprisingly fitting companion to the exhibition – not only does it cover Yuri’s previously unheard story, but it gives a unique insight into what the Soviet space program was really like.

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Featured image is a self portrait of Alexei Leonov, painted on return to Earth following his spacewalk.