Museum of the World Ocean

About museum

The research vessel Kosmonavt Viktor Patsayev is the only space-communications ship in the world that has a museum exhibition on board. In 2001 it was moored at the berth of the Museum of the World Ocean in the city of Kaliningrad. The ship witnessed significant victories of the Soviet Union in space exploration, as it was part of a squadron of ships of the naval space fleet. They supported the testing and flights of spacecraft and took part in creating the country’s nuclear missile shield. The collapse of the Soviet Union and the country’s economic situation led to the disbandment of the fleet. The ship is named after Hero of the Soviet Union Viktor Ivanovich Patsayev, a native of Kaliningrad. Until 1994 it was part of a command-and-measurement complex designed for monitoring and controlling the flights of satellites and interplanetary stations, receiving and processing information, and establishing communications with cosmonauts. For this purpose the ship was equipped with special equipment and a universal telemetry system.