First space wedding: Russian cosmonaut married American girlfriend while orbiting in the ISS. Know all about it
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "First space wedding: Russian cosmonaut married American girlfriend while orbiting in the ISS. Know all about it")
Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko Photograph: (@Space_Station/X)
With a life-size cardboard cutout of Russian astronaut Malenchenko, Dmitriev walked down the aisle to a David Bowie song during the ceremony in Texas.
Ever heard of a space wedding? Well, this is true and it happened for the first time on this day, 22 years ago, when Ekaterina Dmitriev stood on the ground in Texas, United States and married her husband Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko, orbiting in the International Space Station (ISS).
The marriage between Malenchenko and his American girlfriend Dmitriev reportedly happened via a satellite hook-up between the ISS and NASA space control in Houston, after Malenchenko's time on the station was extended.
On August 10, 2003, Malenchenko wore a bow-tie other than his space suit to be ready for the occasion. While Dmitriev wore a traditional ivory wedding dress and posed beside a life-sized cardboard cutout of her new husband at NASA's Johnson Space Centre in Houston.
"As Yuri was further away, he was closer to me because of the communication we have," Dmitriev told The New York Times time. After the wedding, while speaking to reporters she said, “An orbital wedding reflects mankind’s desire and need to go one step further.”
Initially, it was decided that the wedding would happen on earth with a 200-person guest list. But Malenchenko's time on the station was extended after which they found a way out to culminate their love into a marriage.
With a life-size cardboard cutout of Malenchenko Dmitriev walked down the aisle to a David Bowie song during the ceremony.
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At one point, Dmitriev blew a kiss to her love, who was soon going to become her husband via the video, and the cosmonaut returned the gesture with love. Interestingly, another astronaut played the wedding march on a portable keyboard.
After getting married in space, Malenchenko returned home in October, to reunite with his wife.
Though Malenchenko was allowed to marry while in space, the Russian authorities barred other cosmonauts from following the same practice.
