ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the regional museum of cosmonautics, “Earth-Kosmos”, established amidst the socio-political changes of the 1990s in Nikolaevsk, Russia’s Volgograd region. Anchored in the life and achievements of Yuri Malyshev, the region’s sole cosmonaut, the museum presents its visitors with a complex narrative intertwining the global imagery of the Soviet space programme, intimate local histories, and perceptions of one’s homeland. Through an ethnography of the museum’s exhibits and space memorabilia, devoted to the history of the Soviet space programme and Malyshev’s life, this chapter explores how contemporary space cultures are created and reproduced through different media and modes of engagement with the museum’s material environment. In Nikolaevsk, the museum workers represent the Soviet space legacy for contemporary audiences, amplifying the significance of the local against the backdrop of the infinite universe.
