The soaring 100m titanium obelisk outside the All-Russia Exhibition Centre is a monument ‘To the Conquerors of Space’, built in 1964 to commemorate the launch of Sputnik. In its base is the Cosmonautics Museum, a high-concept series of displays from the glory days of the Soviet space program. Exhibits rely heavily on cool space paraphernalia – Yury Gagarin’s space suit, the first Soviet rocket engine and lots of charts and diagrams of various expeditions. The highlight is the awe-inspiring video footage from various orbit missions. Sadly there is no gift shop selling freeze-dried astronaut food. The museum was closed for renovations at the time of research, so who knows what new wonders will be on display upon reopening?