Keighley - the final frontier!

A Russian cosmonaut and a colleague arrived in Keighley last week to give a series of lectures about their experiences in space.

From Korolev City, near Moscow, former cosmonaut Alexander Volkov and head of international relations Alexander Martynov flew into Manchester Airport last Saturday for a week-long stay.

Scout and Guide groups, primary schoolchildren and other groups have taken part in a number of talks, the first of which was held at Victoria Hall on Sunday.

Keighley College arranged the visit with the aid of Yorkshire Forward.

College administrator Carol Vaughan said: "They have been talking about life in space.

"It's such a thrilling thing for the kids to learn about too.

"It's something different and that's what it's about -- keeping the interest there."

Mr Volkov spent more than a year in space and worked on the Mir space station.

His colleague Alexander Martynov has been responsible for bringing Russian space missions safely back to Earth from the control room since 1968.

In addition to lectures at Keighley College, their visit included trips to universities in Sunderland, York and Hull.

Mr Martynov said: "We are making scientific presentations for both students and adults.

"We have had a lot of interest from people here, with a lot of questions. The main aim is to raise interest in technology because it is a problem at the moment."

As well as slides and books, items used in the lectures included space food and an actual space suit used in missions.

The pair returned home today after staying at a hotel in Haworth.

Their visit was connected with the much-anticipated new STAR Centre at the college.

Aimed at young people, when open the STAR Centre will incorporate laboratories, a space shuttle simulator, planetarium and satellite dish.

Users will be able to launch a mock Mars mission and oversee its progress with a specially built Mission Control, and will test their own robot probes.

Government development agency Yorkshire Forward has pledged £350,000 to help build the so-called Science Technology and Aeronautics Regional Centre (STAR), which should be ready in the next few months.