Space Research Institute (IKI), Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS)

Founded in 1966 (Government Resolution from May 15, 1965), then within the Academy of Sciences of the USSR.

Appointed principal organization for robotic space research and exploration in the Academy of Sciences, thus complementing manned space program.

IKI designs and builds scientific instruments for space experiments, acts as principal organization for various scientific space projects and missions, and uses the data of space probes to deepen our understanding of space and Earth.

IKI acronym comes from Russian "Institute Kosmicheskih Issledovanyi", which is Space Research Institute, and is used in English as is.