Russia's first zero-gravity tower will be built in Novosibirsk.

In the 200-meter tower, scientists will be able to conduct research in conditions of short-term weightlessness, the Ministry of Education and Science reported. 

A zero-gravity tower is a vertical structure containing an experimental capsule containing equipment in free fall. Within a few seconds of falling, the capsule experiences a state close to space-like weightlessness. Towers of this caliber are not yet available in Russia. 

The tower will be located in Akademgorodok. Novosibirsk — as part of the Federal Research Center for Power Engineering and Mechanics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The project for the center's creation was presented to the Minister of Science and Higher Education yesterday. Valery FalkovMore than 1000 employees from two local institutes—thermophysics and hydrodynamics—will work there.

In 2019, the estimated cost of establishing a branch of the Federal Research Center for Power Engineering and Mechanics in Novosibirsk was approximately 15 billion rubles. The project's cost has not yet been announced.

Photo: Ministry of Education and Science