Roscosmos videos for the blind: Music about space and humanity by Tigran Jager accompanied the voices of cosmonauts and artists

For the first time in the world, a rocket launch and an ISS module were described for the visually impaired. This was done by renowned artists and cosmonauts from Roscosmos, accompanied by neoclassical music about space and humanity by Tigran Jaeger.

For the first time in history, blind and visually impaired people were able to "see" a rocket launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome and explore one of the modules of the International Space Station (ISS) using audio description. This method transformed visual information into concise and precise verbal descriptions, opening up the world of space technology to those who are visually impaired.

The audio description was prepared by specialists from the "Special View" program of the Art, Science, and Sport Charitable Foundation, in collaboration with specialists from Roscosmos. These expert descriptions were voiced by renowned actors and singers, and Roscosmos cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Sergei Kud-Sverchkov shared their impressions of launch preparations and spacewalks.

To create a three-dimensional impression, musical accompaniment was used from parts of neosymphonies about space and humanity by Tigran Jager (Dzhagharyan): "Singularis", "Banner of Peace" (Znamya Mira), "Hymn of Peace" (a synthesis version of the compositions "Bhagamatri" and "Mea Stella") by a contemporary composer, laureate of the I.O. Dunaevsky International Competition.

His music has repeatedly accompanied major museum projects and fashion shows, as well as festivals in Zaryadye near Red Square in Moscow. In 2022, it was performed at the world's only international music and space festival, Starmus, founded by cosmonaut Alexei Leonov, astrophysicist Garik Israelyan, guitarist Brian May, and scientist Stephen Hawking.

What will people with disabilities and space enthusiasts see with their "auditory vision"?

Now the visually impaired will be able to imagine a rocket as tall as a 17-story building, its metal body with textured joints and powerful booster cones. The ISS will become visible as a gigantic metal structure resembling a bird, with cylindrical compartments and wings—solar panels. Inside the station, they will "see" bright, narrow compartments with handrails and equipment, and the Poisk module as a storage area for spacesuits and spacewalk tools.

How the Project Was Developed

The project took two months to prepare. The first audio description video was released on October 15, International White Cane Day. Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergei Ryzhikov, Alexei Zubritsky, and Oleg Platonov, while on the ISS, became the first-ever audio descriptions, describing views of the planet from orbit. Subsequent recordings were made in November. Sergei Kud-Sverchkov will watch the video of his participation in the project from orbit: on November 27, 2025, he, Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergei Mikayev, and Christopher Williams (American medical physicist and NASA astronaut), departed for another expedition to the ISS.

The videos can be viewed on the specialized portal "Special View" for blind and visually impaired people and on Roscosmos resources. The project's organizers hope that this initiative will serve as a starting point for the development of similar programs that make scientific and cultural sites around the world more accessible to everyone.