The Cosmic celebration at the concert hall "Komsomolets"

The concert hall "Komsomolets" hosted a celebration dedicated to the 80th birth anniversary of Yuri Gagarin and to the opening of XLI International Social and Scientific Readings, which will be held in Gagarin from 9th to 12th of March.

The guest of honor and a permanent member of the social and scientific readings People's Artist of the USSR Iosif Kobzon greeted the audience and snag for the Gagarin’s countrymen and the representatives of “space brotherhood” the songs about the homeland.

Also participating in the readings Iosif Kobzon expressed the collective opinion that in the view of historical justice a monument to the first cosmonaut’s father should be set up in Gagarin. In fact, during their life time Yuri Alekseevich’s parents were inseparable.

On the 80th birth anniversary of Gagarin the crew of the ISS addressed the participants of the 41st International Social and Scientific Readings from the Earth orbit.

Here is the background of the Gagarin readings. The cosmonaut and best friend of the first cosmonaut Alexey Leonov made a proposal to get together on Yuri Gagarin’s birthday on his native land. So the idea of the Gagarin readings appeared. They started in March 1974, when the big delegation from the Cosmonaut Training Center including cosmonauts headed by A.A. Leonov came to the town. And Cosmonaut Training Center named after Yuri Gagarin has been the founder and organizer of the International Social and Scientific Readings in memory of Yuri Gagarin for 40 years now, keeping this good tradition.

Yuri Gagarin was the commander of the cosmonaut squad, then the Deputy Head of the Cosmonaut Training Center, participated in the training new astronauts for the flights, took part in preparing the flight mission, tried to ensure that the cosmonaut for the last days before the start "could calmly and effectively work on the task". Since 1989 the Joint Memorial Museum of Yuri Gagarin has been taking an active part in organizing and holding the Gagarin readings. At the initiative of the Director of the museum M.V. Stepanova and with the support of the cosmonaut A.A. Leonov, the veterans of the space exploration B.N. Kantemirov, Ts.V. Solovev, V.N. Sokolsky the Gagarin readings were transformed into the Social and Scientific Readings in memory of Yuri Gagarin. The organizing committee of the readings was set up. A.A. Leonov was elected the chairman of it.