Remembering the first man in space
April 12, 2008
On April 12 1961, Yuri Gagarin took off from Baikonur cosmodrome towards where no human had been before: the outer space. On board the spacecraft Vostok 1, he became the first person to see with his own eyes that the Earth is indeed round and mostly covered with water. During a short but intense 108 minutes flight, Gagarin orbited once around the Earth at 18,000 miles an hour. Eventually, he ejected from the capsule and landed by parachute on an agricultural area of Saratov region.
Although we will go deeper into Gagarin and first manned space flight stories in future posts, I would like to share with you some selected commemorative videos.
Yuri Gagarin during the training phase
Filed under Cold War, Historical figures, Space | 3 Comments | Share This
The twentieth century Joan of Arc
April 4, 2008
During the First World War, women were mobilized on an unprecedented scale. Some of them, mainly Russian, wouldn’t be satisfied working in the rear and would eventually enroll in the army. Maria Bochkareva stood out among all of them. She was born to a poor peasant family and fought in the frontline from the very beginning of the war. She was wounded in several occasions, formed the so-called ‘women’s battalions of death’, got the highest honors and became a worldwide famous charismatic leader. She was executed by the Bolsheviks when she was just 30 years old.
Maria Leontievna Bochkareva
Filed under Historical figures, Military, World War I | 6 Comments | Share This
Bringing down planes with balloons
March 22, 2008
Like all great armed conflicts, the Second World War brought an industrial and technological revolution to all warring nations. Oddly enough, despite the military innovation of that period, to fight bombings over cities and other strategic targets, armies turned to an 18th century invention: aerostats. Moored balloons played a key role in the defense of London, the Invasion of Normandy and the Battle of Moscow, where this system was employed in its most massive and sophisticated way.
Soviet barrage balloon being lowered in 1945
Filed under Aviation, Military, Moscow, World War II | 2 Comments | Share This
Russia, a country of contrasts
March 11, 2008
To say that the Russian Federation is a country of contrasts is quite an obvious statement, since: it’s the world’s largest country, its population exceeds 140 million, it has tens of ethnic groups, more than 100 languages are spoken in it, it includes 11 time zones, it has moved from communism to the wildest capitalism in just a few years, and so on.
Although all these features predispose to the most diverse and amazing situations, las week we were able to see some images that may even defy the spacetime continuum. I refer to the fact of seeing a cosmonaut on board the International Space Station, the ultimate example of human technological development at the dawn of 21st century, and Nenets indigenous, who live in the Arctic Circle like their ancestors did, doing something in common. Probably the following pictures will show better such contrast:
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Stalin’s golden cage
March 2, 2008
In 1931 was opened in the very center of Moscow the biggest and most modern residential complex in Europe. Fully equipped with a wealth of facilities and services, one may say it was a city within the city. Its exclusive apartments were addressed to the most outstanding members of the soviet elite. But what began as a dream turned into a nightmare: in just a few years a third of its residents came to a bad end because of Stalin’s purges, so the building became a symbol of that dark period of repression.
Current view of the building
Filed under Moscow, Stalin | 4 Comments | Share This
Cold War blazing skies
February 24, 2008
Last week, strategic bombers Tu-95 caused the most serious incidents since Russia resumed its long-range air patrols: they violated the Japanese airspace and flew twice at low altitude over the aircraft-carrier USS Nimitz. The return of these giants of the sky brings back memories of the legendary Cold War oceanic flights, filled with incidents and anecdotes ranging from scratches and collisions in flight to pilots from both sides waving to each other while showing Playboy magazines.
Tu-95MS about to refuel in flight
Filed under Aviation, Cold War, Military | 18 Comments | Share This
A wide angle view of Russia & the former USSR
February 18, 2008
As any worthwhile blog, Soviet Russia has a complete about page. Therefore, no introductory post should be necessary… however, I wouldn’t like to start posting without placing a kind of foundating stone as a welcome message.
As the header paragraph goes: “Soviet Russia is an inquisitive look at Russia and the former Soviet Union aiming to inform and entertain covering a wide range of topics”.
So, if you share such curiosity, this is your place. Welcome.
About the photo above: taken by Roman Sobolenko. If wou want to know what’s shown, click on the image to see some descriptive notes.
Filed under Uncategorized | 2 Comments | Share This
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