A shiny Yuri Gagarin stands tall in the city center of Karaganda. This monument dedicated to cosmonauts has been erected in 2014 to coincide with the 80th birthday of Gagarin. The city of Karaganda sits in the middle of the endless kazakh steppes. These steppes have been the landing site for many cosmonauts coming back from the International Space Station. Usually, Returning cosmonauts stay in Karaganda some days to recover and complete health checks, before being able to go back home.

Credits: Simone Bergonzi (Italy, @simobergz)

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