Inspirational School Visits – Deconstructing Science in Russia

For science students, inspirational school visits abroad are an opportunity to learn about a subject from a new perspective. They can visit specialist institutions and learn more about their subject in other countries, where the history and priorities have differed in interesting ways. Across Europe, there are many exciting destinations for science students. Inspirational school visits to Russia can take them to the Museum of Cosmonautics and Rocket Technology in St Petersburg, the Arctic and Antarctic Museum in St Petersburg, and the Moscow Zoo and State Darwin Museum in Moscow.

The Museum of Cosmonautics and Rocket Technology, St Petersburg

The role of the Soviet Union and Russia in space technology has been critical, from the heady days of the space race to contemporary developments. Students visiting Russia have the unique opportunity to visit the Museum of Cosmonautics and Rocket Technology and see artefacts of the country’s space technology history up close. These include historic rocket engines, a Soviet era re-entry capsule and the space suits of cosmonauts. The buildings housing the museum were used in the 1930s for one of the first rocket research facilities in the Soviet Union.

The Arctic and Antarctic Museum, St Petersburg

Founded in the 1930s as part of the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute of the Soviet Union, the Arctic and Antarctic Museum is the largest museum in the world to investigate the history and technology of polar exploration. It is a fascinating highlight for science students visiting Russia. Its exhibits are varied, with subject matters including the natural environment of the Arctic and the Antarctic, a history of exploring and navigating the North Sea Route, Russian polar aviation from 1930 to 1950, and items made of bone from Uelen.

Moscow Zoo

Moscow Zoo houses over 6,000 animals across approximately 1,000 species in an area of 21.5 hectares. Its institutional focuses are animal behaviour, reproduction and feeding, and the breeding of endangered species. It is an excellent item on the itinerary for inspirational school visits to Russia with a scientific bent, providing the opportunity to investigate biological diversity and see a wide number of animal species, including ungulates, pinnipeds and spectacled bears.

State Darwin Museum, Moscow

Students can continue their understanding of the nature world with a visit to the State Darwin Museum, which was the first museum in the world to focus on evolution. It is a large museum, with 400,000 items in displays on the history of the museum, biological diversity, microevolution, the stages of nature cognition (i.e. the development of scientific thought about the natural world), zoogeography, macroevolution and ethology. Students can ride on a submarine and see the life of hydrothermal communities, or walk the Path of Evolution. The museum is a valuable resource for science students on inspirational school visits to Russia.

Angela Bowden works for STS (School Travel Service), the UK's largest educational travel company, providing tours for secondary schools, primary schools and colleges. Inspirational school visits with STS can encompass a focus on art/design, foreign languages, history, science/nature, geography and more, to worldwide destinations.

Writer and Online Marketing Manager in London.