The 31st ASE Planetary Congress is held in Minsk due 9-15 September 2018. Taking part in the congress are about 90 cosmonauts from 19 countries. The largest delegations came from Russia and the United States, as well as participants from Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, China and other countries. The purpose of the congress is to popularize science and technology, to draw attention to space exploration, and to call for international cooperation.

The National Academy of Sciences of Belarus is one of the main organizers of the event. The opening ceremony with the participation of the President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko took place in the BelExpo expo center on 10 September.

The exhibition pavilion hosted an exposition themed around space exploration. The guests learned more about the history of Belarus and its achievements in the field of space research. Cosmonauts got familiar with the Belarusian optical technology, high-resolution equipment, space mirrors with the utmost smoothness, instruments for remote sensing of the Earth, the results of the series of the Union State space programs.

The opening ceremony was followed by working sessions where the cosmonauts who returned from the orbit last year talked about their flights.

Photo president.gov.by, Belinterexpo, Navuka, NASB