MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russian cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka, Anatoli Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner, who are all members of the current Expedition 62 to the International Space Station (ISS), have congratulated everyone with Cosmonautics Day, celebrated on 12 April.
“Exactly 59 years ago Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first [human to fly into space],” Skripochka, who is the commander of Expedition 62, said in a video address released by Russian space agency Roscosmos.
This is the first time that Cosmonautics Day is celebrated remotely, amid the coronavirus pandemic. A traditional concert in the Moscow Kremlin has been postponed, all celebratory events will be held online.
Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated the ISS crew with the upcoming holiday on Friday, via video link.
Cosmonautics Day is celebrated in Russia, as well as some former USSR countries, to commemorate the first ever manned space flight, which was carried out by Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin on 12 April 1961. Other countries celebrate the International Day of Human Space Flight on 12 April.
Sourse: sputniknews.com
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