In 1878 Konstantin Tsiolkovsky came to Ryazan. Here he continued his scientific research. However, in Ryazan he didn’t teach the private lessons that brought him income in Vyatka. He lived on savings that were small.

A year later Tsiolkovsky found out by accident that in Ryazan gymnasium one can pass exams as an external student. He petitioned to be admitted to the arithmetic and geometry teacher test. As a self-taught person, he had to take the most complete exam, which included catechism (a summary of Christian beliefs in the format of questions and answers), church service, grammar and other subjects that Tsiolkovsky had never been interested in or engaged in before. Tsiolkovsky recalled: “… I had to go down from the clouds, to take on the catechism and church service that I hated”. However, he passed the exams successfully.

In October 1879, Tsiolkovsky was awarded by the Test Board of the Moscow School Administration the ‘right to teach mathematics at the County School of Mathematics, with all the rights and advantages granted to the teachers of county schools’.

He had to wait for the assignment for almost four months. Tsiolkovsky spent all this time in the village at the local landowner’s house, studying with his children. During the long walks in the vicinity, he dreamed of airships, reflecting on the relationships of bodies of various shapes and various movements that cause relative gravity.