How much does a cosmonaut earn and has he seen aliens. Interview with Oleg Artemyev

What are the business trips for cosmonauts, what is the amount of their insurance? Oleg Artemyev answered these and other questions for "Zvyazda". He made a space flight last year.

Oleg Germanovich, who is often called a Belarusian-Russian cosmonaut, briefly visited Vitebsk. His parents live here.

We met near Victory Square. The cosmonaut was walking with his wife Anna and almost 5-year-old son Savely, sister Tatyana, her husband Ivan, and their children. We decided to visit a children's entertainment center. While the kids were having fun under the supervision of adults, we talked.

Since one can read even the minor details of the life of cosmonauts on the internet, I asked the interlocutor about his personal impressions.

— Oleg Germanovich, did you come to visit your parents or are you in Belarus on official business?

— On official business. I was invited to speak to the students of Vitebsk State University named after P.M. Masherov. I will also visit a school in the agro-town of Novka (near Vitebsk - Ed.). An astronomy club operates there. I will first show a short film about the flight. Then I will answer questions. This is how our meetings usually take place. They are part of the work to popularize cosmonautics.

The last time I was in Vitebsk was about three months before the flight. The spacecraft launched on March 26. The landing took place on September 11, 2014. The flight lasted 169 days.

— Do you know what number cosmonaut you are among the inhabitants of Earth?

— If we count Soviet and Russian cosmonauts, I am the 118th. In that list, there are three from Belarus: Klimuk, Kovalyonok, and Navitsky. I don't mind being called a Russian cosmonaut connected with Belarus. My father, German Alekseevich, is your countryman. He was born in the village of Druya, Braslav district. My parents have been living in Vitebsk since the early 1990s. In a house on Titov Street. I was born in Riga. I finished secondary school in the city of Leninsk (now Baikonur - Ed.). My father was a military man, so we moved often.

And I don't know how many Earthlings have been to space in total. By the way, not everyone flies from our detachment. 220 test pilot and researcher astronaut certificates were issued. But about half of them flew. The rest do not pass due to health reasons or fail exams before the flight. And you need to pass 150 exams and tests. And, by the way, they are retaken every three years, because technology is improving, and knowledge needs to be "updated". Grades are not even given in points, but are calculated to tenths of a point. And a queue of candidates appears... Now it is "scheduled" until 2020. To prepare a person for a flight, at least two years are needed.

— Can you be considered one of the oldest in age among those who conquered space?

— No. The "longest-playing astronaut" is the American John Glenn. He flew at 77. As for our astronauts, some flew for the first time at 50. It all depends on training and other factors. How does it happen? They are enrolled in the cosmonaut corps, for example, at 30 years old. You train according to certain programs, and they are closed... I was enrolled in the corps at 32. And I only flew 11 years later.

— Before your flight, you participated in Mars programs. For example, in 2009, you participated in a 105-day experiment that simulated a flight to Mars.

— Yes. I was waiting for my flight, so I could participate in various experiments.

— Are you a civilian astronaut?

— By education, I am a mechanical engineer. I graduated from the Bauman Moscow State Technical University with a degree in "Technology and Physics of Low Temperatures". And before that, with honors, from the Tallinn Polytechnic Institute with a degree in "Electrical Equipment of Industrial Enterprises and Installations". I served in the army in Vilnius as a driver in the motorized rifle troops.

— Presumably, after a flight, an astronaut receives an award, an apartment?

— I didn't receive an order. I live with my wife and son in a dormitory apartment type – 25 kilometers from "Star City". We have a one-room apartment there with all amenities. Yes, under Soviet rule, astronauts were given housing, a dacha, a "Volga" car. Now we live, how to put it (he thought), under capitalism, so...

— And how much, if it's not a secret, does an astronaut earn?

— 77 thousand Russian rubles is my salary on Earth. When in space, per diem is accrued: from 300 to 400 dollars per day, depending on what you are doing. Whether you go into outer space or work like this – everything is taken into account. You can't buy an apartment with one flight. I flew, well... I paid off my debts. To buy an apartment, you need to fly again (smiles).

— And does your wife work?

— Not yet, because she is raising a child. She graduated from the Institute of Service, a merchandiser. The wives of those who were previously enrolled in the detachment managed to get jobs in "Zvezdny"... Those who joined later have to go to work in Moscow or Korolev. And it takes 2.5 hours by car one way to Moscow. It's quite difficult...

— I'm sure readers will be interested to know: where do single cosmonauts meet potential wives?

— I met Anna during special parachute training for cosmonauts. Her dad was the head of the jumps. Yes, she jumped a couple of times, and that was enough for her (smiles).

— Cosmonauts are insured before a flight, aren't they?

— Absolutely! I don't remember the amount, because I didn't read carefully what I was signing before the flight. And when I joined the detachment, I was insured. When I had an Achilles tendon rupture during training, they paid about 20 thousand dollars. Then for an injury – they sewed up a cut on my head – I received about 2,000 dollars.

— And was it scary to fly? Were there any life-or-death situations during the flight?

— Of course, a normal person should have a sense of fear. But when you prepare for a long time, it's not scary because you know what to expect. That's why special types of training have been developed for cosmonaut candidates. There is also special parachute training, which precisely allows you to behave calmly in difficult situations. Without practice, anyone would be a bit scared.

We had two instances of smoke. But all emergency situations – fire, depressurization, and toxic atmosphere (if there is an ammonia leak – a situation deadly dangerous) – are practiced to automatism on Earth. Therefore, in space, everyone acts according to a defined algorithm.

— Do cosmonauts have the right to retire earlier, considering the complexity of their work?

— If you've been in the cosmonaut corps for 10 years, you can retire, even without a space flight… I have a strong desire to go there again. I miss it!

— What is a day like in space?

— We wake up at 6 AM. We live by Greenwich Mean Time. We have an eight-hour workday. No, no one is on duty, because everyone goes to bed and wakes up at the same time. After breakfast, we contact Earth to clarify what needs to be done. Although you prepare for work the evening before, as you need to find the equipment, and there is a lot of it. The "base" specifies where everything is located. However, sometimes something gets "lost," or can float away due to weightlessness. That's why you need to find it the evening before. And a lot of time is spent on this.

Out of the eight working hours, two are for physical exercise. It is necessary to stay in shape, to return home in a normal condition. One hour is for the treadmill, and another hour is for strength training or a stationary bike.

Weightlessness is a dangerous thing. Irreversible changes occur in the body: in the cardiovascular, bone, and immune systems. There was an incident when Soviet cosmonauts who flew without physical exertion were barely revived, so to speak… There is also a list of tasks on board that you can choose to perform or not.

— What do you mean?

— Some experiments can be conducted at will, additional repairs. But, believe me, no one in space is slacking off. Everyone tries to do as much useful work as possible. For example, the "Space Hurricane" experiment is for predicting ecological disasters and cataclysms. You conduct it and take pictures… During our flight, there was a task from "Roscosmos": to maintain a blog on social media to popularize cosmonautics.

— So, you are a space blogger?

— Well… (laughs).

— Excuse me for a frivolous question: have you seen "flying saucers" in space? By the way, during preparation for a flight, are you taught how to properly "make contact" with aliens?

— I haven't seen anything completely incomprehensible. I mean something that wouldn't have an explanation. You see something, and then it turns out to be ordinary space debris. And there's plenty of it in space. For example, an "object" is flying. It seems like it's "changing color," "the signal is dropping." Then the Sun's angle changes – and you realize that what you call a "saucer" is pieces of thermal insulation from some station…

Regarding possible contact, we have equipment everywhere. First, you need to take photos and videos, and only then "prepare for contact." You need to leave documentary "material" to be able to look later at what happened to you: whether you were eaten immediately or later (he jokes).

— Has your perception, your understanding of life changed after the flight?

— I've become kinder.

— Were you really angry?

— No… You become calmer. You realize that you've completed the minimum program: you've flown and been in outer space.

— Did you get the feeling that life was given for a reason? Excuse me for being ironic.

— It's not for nothing if you have children… I felt that I made a small contribution to people continuing to fly. I looked at what and how things are in space. Now we need to think about how to land on the Moon, on Mars. Even if I don't manage it myself, my experience, knowledge, and skills will be useful to help others do it.

Alexander Pukshansky, Zviazda