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Russian cosmonauts train in Crimea

The cosmonauts carried out a practice flight on a Tu-134 LK1

MOSCOW, July 13 /TASS/. Russian cosmonauts enlisted in 2010 and 2012 have carried out a practice flight in Crimea as part of preparations for a future space mission. Their task was to observe the terrain from a plane, a source at the Russian Cosmonaut Training Center told TASS on Monday.

"A Tu-134 LK1 flight bench was used to make five practice flights. Apart from the territory of Crimea, which the cosmonauts observed for the first time, they also made visual and instrumental observations over of the northern fringe of the Caucasus mountain range," the Center’s representative said.

During the flight, the cosmonauts observed and registered various objects including natural reserves, mountain groups and valleys, rivers, water reservoirs and water canals, glaciers, mud volcanoes, cities and infrastructure as well as hydraulic engineering installations.

Besides, the cosmonauts have visited the Marine Biology Research Institute in Sevastopol to hear a report on experience of using satellite data in environmental research and the Simferopol based Crimean Astrophysical Observatory where they took part in practical classes for studying the design of unique telescopes and their application.